


Of Ghosts and Love Stories

by FabulosIceCream



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternative Universe - Ghost Hunt AU, Assistant Lance, Assistant Shiro, F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Ghost hunter Pidge, Hunk & Lance (Voltron) Friendship, Sassy Pidge | Katie Holt, Slow Burn, celebrity keith
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-24
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:48:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 26
Words: 86,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27180656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FabulosIceCream/pseuds/FabulosIceCream
Summary: After breaking a very expensive camera and injuring an assistant, Lance McClain is thrown into the world of the paranormal. Working under the worst boss ever - Pidge Gunderson, a short self-centred ghost hunter, Lance learns more and more about the occult. All he expects is office work and small cases, but he soon understands that life has other things planned for him: crazy ghosts, immortal monsters, strange powers and falling in love?!
Relationships: Lance/Pidge | Katie Holt
Comments: 25
Kudos: 23





	1. Chapter 1

It was completely dark inside the room. We could only hear the raindrops falling on the rooftop. A blue penlight's glow was moving around illuminating Ina’s face.

“Have you ever heard about the curse of the old schoolhouse? Lance, do you know it?”

I shook my head, curious to hear about the building. Ever since I started high school, I never heard anything about a curse surrounding the school.” I know half of it collapsed and they stopped the demolition because of it.”

“No, no! They stopped because of the c-c-cruse!” Ina shouted.” All kinds of accidents happened there in the past! Students breaking their legs after falling down the stairs, windows shattering and I even heard one student killed himself five years ago!”

“Oh, I remember the story.” Nadia whispered,” They started building the new gym ten months ago and they needed space so they started the demolition process, but their machines stopped working and workers became ill and the principal had to postpone the process.” She stopped to look us in the eyes.” They restarted demolishing it last month but had to stop after they found the body of a boy on the second floor!”

I didn’t like the sound of it. It was surprising that I haven’t heard about this, despite being almost at the end of my second year here.

“One of my friends saw a ghost on the first floor!” Nadia said with a grim look on her face.

Ok, that was enough.” We should stop, I don’t like this story…” I said and Ina turned off her penlight. “One…”

After we finished telling ghost stories, we closed the lights and counted to three to finish the session.

“Two...” said Nadia trembling.

“Three...” I was the last one.

For a few seconds, we stayed in complete silence. Only raindrops. We waited for a fourth voice as always.

“FOUR”

“AAAAAH!!”

We all screamed in fear, horrified. We fell into a panic with agonizing cries. I felt like a little girl. At an instant, the darkroom lit up. In the doorway, there was a girl looking at us with interest. She was short, dressed in dark jeans, a black shirt and a long coat. Her hair was brownish, cut to her shoulders, framing her face. On her nose, there was a pair of round glasses. Her eyes were looking at us curiously, but with a gloomy and almost tragic look in them.

She wasn’t wearing a uniform. Maybe an exchange student?

“W-Was that you?” Nadia asked with fear.

“Yes…did I do something wrong?” the girl asked. She had a nice peaceful voice.

Ina sat up, relived “I thought I was going to die for a second.”

“Excuse me, I was looking around. The room was dark and then I heard voices, so I just…”

“No, it’s ok, don’t worry!” Nadia said joyfully “It was our fault for staying in the dark!” She got up and approached the girl.” I’m Nadia, the head of the paranormal club! Are you an exchange student?”

I saw the look in Nadia’s face, and I recognized it immediately. She has always been fascinated with the paranormal and always looked for others that enjoyed her passion. When she started the club, she asked everyone around the school, but no one was interested to enter. Now, I was sure she wanted to invite this girl in the club.

  
The stranger paused for a second.

“What year are you in?”

“I’m seventeen this year” she answered with a smile on her face. A fake smile. Strange. Normally, someone will say that they are the 10th or 11th grade, not give their age. I got a strange feeling from her. I usually flirt with the new students, but now I can tell we aren’t going to match.

"We are sorry to have surprised you too! We were telling ghost stories." Nadia remarked.

“Is that so?” she smiled. “Maybe next time I could join you.”

Ina and Nadia screamed in delight. They pulled her arms. “What’s your name?”

“Pidge…”

What the hell was a Pidge? That was such a strange name. Sounds foreign. Nadia and Ina were both very happy, but I could tell the girl was a little bit uncomfortable. That fake smile…I felt it. She had something hidden under that façade. Her eyes weren’t smiling.

“Pidge…do you like ghost stories?” I asked curiously.

“Sort of…” The girls screamed in delight upon hearing her answer.

“What are you doing at school at this hour?” I asked.

“I had something to take care of.”

“Then do it faster, because we have to go home,” I shouted furiously. I didn’t like this girl at all. She came here with this strange aura. I didn’t like this feeling in my chest.

She frowned. “The truth is I am in a hurry now, so maybe tomorrow.”

Nadia nodded. “Perfect! Look for us in room 14, that’s where we’ll be.”

The girl smiled and left towards the second floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know how this AU came to my mind, but it somehow works!
> 
> If you haven't watched Ghost Hunt yet, I highly suggest you give it a try, especially if you enjoy horror stuff. I was inspired by the plot and the characters, but I tried to change their interactions and personalities were it was needed.  
> For the first cases, I will follow the anime plot, but I plan to create an original investigation in the future.
> 
> This is my first fanfiction ever, so suggestions and criticism are appreciated! Thanks!!


	2. Chapter 2

School days were boring except Thursday when we had club meetings.

The weather was nice today. Spring was in full bloom. The April weather was amazing, but I couldn’t wait for summer when I will finally finish 10th grade and I’ll be able to relax once again. The beautiful weather made me happier. I didn’t have that feeling of dread anymore.

The old school building was standing on the opposite side of the sports ground facing the new one. A wooden, half-demolished building. A building that had many bad rumours going around about it. Everyone considered it a haunted mansion.

Are the rumours true?

I decided to go in.

The entrance was old-fashioned, with a big hallway. Some huge bookshelves were on the left and right sides of the doorway. In the middle of the room, there was a very expensive-looking camera. Strange.

Why would there be a camera?

This thing totally puzzled me. It’s like seeing a mermaid in your tub. Just when I stretched my hands towards the video camera...

“Who is there?”

A man’s sharp voice.

Of course I was surprised. Being in a supposedly haunted building made me not just surprised. I literally jumped back! While jumping I unintentionally crashed into the almost collapsed bookshelf.

At that moment it swayed turning around.

On my vision's edge, I saw the man's figure standing at the door.

I tried to avoid the bookshelf that was inclining towards me for the second time. The man jumped and pushed me out of the falling bookshelf, but unfortunately, it collapsed and fell directly on top of the camera.

That surprised me...I thought that was going to crash me.

Taking a breath of relief, I turned to face the man. Not good.

Now the camera is completely broken. And the man is lying on the floor.

"Are you alright?"

I rushed over to him. And at the same time, I heard a familiar voice.

"What's wrong?" A girl’s voice.

The one who rushed from the door was the ‘exchange student’ who made me feel unrestful since yesterday - Pidge. Even today she wasn’t wearing a uniform. She was as black as ever, only a green simple headband giving her a little bit of colour. She ran over to check the collapsed man near me.

“Shiro!”

Does she know him? Saying that she noticed me, giving me an intense look.

"What happened?"

"Ah, that's…"

Just when I was about to answer, the fallen man raised his head.

"Are you hurt?" Pidge asked him.

"Yes..." he muttered. Then, he slowly got up. He was taller than me, with an army-style hairstyle. Near the white streak on his hair there was blood. He hit his head!

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry! I was surprised and…” I quickly tried to help him, but Pidge stopped me. She gave me a furious look.

“We met yesterday, right?”

“Yes...”

“What’s your name?”

“Lance. Lance McClain”

”Lance, is there a hospital near here?”

“Yes, just around the corner…”

She nodded. “I will be alright from here on, you can return to the classroom."

"But..."

"I should let you know that the school bell just rang."

Heh?

I got up early and I'm still late? Ah, I should have never approached the old building. As I thought, this place is full of bad luck!

~

Even though I ran, in all my haste I was totally late for school. The teacher had to scold me in front of the whole class... It couldn't get any worse. Thanks to this I was in a bad mood throughout the whole day.

When school ended, I felt like another person. I could finally start the weekend without any more incidents.

“Lance, aren’t you going to stay with us and tell ghost stories with that girl?”

I didn’t want to see her face after what happened this morning.

“No, I’m going home”

“Buuuut Lance, the club is finally getting a new member! We can finally hear other scary stories…”

...Just when they were talking about this...

"Wait a minute."

The voice we heard is that of our class rep, Nyma Beezer.

When I started high school, I had a little crush on her but decided she wasn’t worth the hustle. She only stayed with her group of friends, harshly disrespecting everyone around her.

"Ah, Nyma, good-bye." Nadia turned to her with an innocent smile.

"It isn't goodbye. What were you talking about just now?"

Nyma seemed to be in a bad mood…Perfect

Then I replied, "We're going to tell ghost stories today. That's what we were talking about."

She paled.” That’s what you’ve been doing after school?!” I felt her murderous intent.

Just as she was about to scold us, Pidge poked her head into the room .”Is Lance McClain here?”

Fuck, I was in big trouble.

Nyma turned to her direction. "What year are you? What are you doing here?"

"Ah, I had an arrangement with these students..."

"Arrangement? About the ghost stories?"

"That's right...?"

Hearing Pidge's answer, Nyma turned to us without fail.

"Didn't I tell you to stop doing this?!" she screamed annoyed. "No wonder I've been having headaches since this morning."

"What are you talking about?” Ina asked.

I also inclined my head doubtfully. What is she talking about?

" I am sensitive to spirits. I have headaches when a lot of them gather. And I am having some today. Spirits have definitely gathered here." She pauses and glances at me." Didn't you know? When you tell ghost stories spirits gather. These are mainly low-level spirits. But even if they are low-level ones, when a lot of them gather they attract stronger spirits. You will be in trouble if that happens."

……WHAT'S WITH THIS GIRL?!

Then she turned to Pidge.

"It would be quite troublesome if such a sweet girl like you did it too. I'd have to do an exorcism," she said that with a thoughtful expression.

Pidge shrugged her shoulders.

"Isn't it just your imagination?"

"That's why people who can't sense spirits are annoying." her tone was persistently intense, but Pidge looked at her with strong intent.

"You, if you really can sense them then do you sense something from the old school building?" she questioned.

"Old school building? Ah, it seems spirits of those who died during the war are gathering there." Nyma remarked quickly.

"Died during the war…?"

"Right. I often see a man's shadow looking at me from the windows and it looks like a man from the war"

Nadia and Ina looked terrified.

"Which war?"

"Of course, World War II. During the war, there was a hospital on that place. The spirits of the dead nurses and soldiers can be seen there. It had been air-raided once. “

"Interesting…” Pidge smiled sarcastically. "I didn't know this was a hospital during the war. I heard that this school was here since pre-war days. And before that, there was a medical faculty, wasn't there?"

Nyma stopped in her tracks. She looked confused. I smirked, seeing the class rep without words made me feel better.

"I wouldn’t know such a thing. Anyway, I've seen them. A person unable to sense them wouldn't understand." she didn’t give up.

Pidge looked at her coldly and turned to us.

"Since there is no good, let's go elsewhere?"

"Still continuing with such a thing!" Nyma snaped at Pidge with incredible force. But the girl, completely unconcerned came to us making Nadia and Ina restless again.

"Let's put it off for today?" Ina said, fear in her voice.

"I agree...I'm not in the mood for it." Nadia lost her enthusiasm too.

"I see." Pidge nodded in assent. "Then some other time." Then, she turned to me, “Mister McClain, please”

The girls threw a surprised glance at me. Nadia smirked and smiled.

"What is it?"

"Do you have a spare minute?"

At that moment I knew I was in big trouble.

~

I followed Pidge into the hallway. The strange feeling from yesterday came back to me.

"Who's that girl?" she asked me while walking in a brisk step before me.

"Our class rep. We don’t talk too much, our personalities don’t really crash. She doesn’t like me for some reason."

"I wonder why… Is she really a medium?" she asked with a thoughtful expression.

"Well, she said it herself, didn't she? By the way, is the man from this morning alright?"

"That’s what I wanted to talk with you about." Pidge turned to face me with her cold, indifferent expression.

"He sprained his left ankle. It is apparently in very bad condition, so he won't be able to stand for a while."

That was not good.” Oh…I’m really sorry…I was very surprised and I got scared…and… “saying this I realized that I should apologize to the man, not to her. I felt really bad.

"Well… Is he an acquaintance of yours?"

"Wasn't it obvious?" she rolled her eyes and glanced at me with ridicule.

"What kind of acquaintance?" I asked. Maybe he was her brother? Or a friend? But then what were they doing in the old schoolhouse?”

Even so, he was giving me a strange feeling. That guy from the morning was over the hill no matter how you look at him.

Pidge replied in a casual manner. "Assistant." Oh. That made things look so ridiculous. What kind of assistant is she if she talks so rudely and sarcastically with everyone? Would you normally talk to your employer in such a rude tone?

"Your boss seemed to have a rather strict personality."

I say this with a grain of sarcasm. I don't know if it was a sprained ankle or a broken bone, but I had already relieved myself from that responsibility by lending him a hand. "But it wasn't only me who was responsible for your employer's injury. He was the one who surprised me--"

"It's the opposite."

The opposite? What is? I didn't surprise him for sure.

Pidge spoke curtly—"I am the boss. He is the assistant."

Eh!?

EEEEHH?!

……What the heck? She’s joking, right?

An almost seventeen-year-old using an adult as her assistant? What in the world is this girl? Was this an elaborate prank? Where were the cameras and the TV crew? I stared at Pidge with an ‘are you serious’ expression. She looked at me with all her pale glory and bored brown eyes.

"My assistant being unable to move is troubling. Don't you think you have a responsibility to take on, Mister McClain?"

"Hey, don't joke around! Just to make things clear, I'm a victim too. Not only was I startled to death, but I was late for school."

All the world's cold was gathered inside her eyes.

"He has a broken leg. And how are you?"

"... I'm pretty…healthy?"

"Moreover, the camera was broken.”

Ah, that video camera. I almost forgot about it. It must have fallen when the bookshelf hit the ground. And it looked so expensive…

"Shiro... I mean, my assistant, tried to prevent you from touching it, which lead to our current situation."

"That is…really…" A really bad situation. That was inevitable. It wasn't my fault. Even if I say so, it doesn't feel like she'll understand. Her intense gaze scared me.

"I would have liked for you to pay compensation for the camera, but…"

Compensation!? Are you joking? I was broke!

"It isn't like I broke it intentionally!"

"Didn't they teach you not to touch other people's stuff without permission?"

She started getting on my nerves.

"And how much is the compensation…?"

What Pidge estimated was an unbelievable sum of money. Such a great cost that only exists in dreams. I wouldn’t be able to pay that not even in five years. It was true that if I maybe got a part-time job I would be able to, but…

"Cut it out with the jokes! Why is that video camera so expensive?!”

"That video camera was custom-made. Would you like to see the certificate?"

Custom-made. My mind went blank. What am I going to do?

Pidge looked at me. "If you don't like this...Would you mind taking the place of my assistant? Like this, you’ll be able to pay your debt."

"By this… You mean I'll be working as your assistant?"

"Exactly."

"I'll do it." How hard can it be? Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to escape this nightmare. Pidge nodded her head in agreement.

Wait, what was her job again? A teenager with an assistant and custom-made expensive cameras. What the hell was her occupation?

"By the way, what kind of work do you do?"

"Ghost Hunter."

"What!?" she had to be joking and I had enough of her. When I was about to laugh, she continued seriously.

"Or in other words, ghost extermination. We've come here to investigate the old school building by the request of the principal. We are called 'Gunderson Psychic Research'."

What the hell is that?!

“G-Gunderson...psychic… research…?” what kind of name was that?!

"A psychic phenomenon investigation service. And I am the head of it. My name is Gunderson, Pidge Gunderson"

I had no words left to say. The serious tone in her voice indicated that there was no joke involved. This, or she was the best comedian I’ve ever met in my life.

The head of a company that exorcises ghosts… Was I stuck in a very badly written novel?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shiro is here!
> 
> I wanted to clarify that I'm using the structure of highschool from my country , where usually if you are 16-17 you'd be in 10th grade. In the story, Lance is 17, at the end of the 10th grade.
> 
> As always, suggestions and ideas are always welcomed!


	3. Chapter 3

So, Saturday early in the morning I was in front of the school gates, ready to start my new job.

When I arrived at the old school, Pidge was already there, standing at the back of a black van full of different equipment. A shelf was fixed on the inside of the car. On top of it sat a stereo system, several small televisions, laptops and cameras, all kinds of boxes full of wires, all squished tightly together.

“You’re late, Lance” Pidge commented.

I glanced at her but decided to hold back my anger. I see she got bored and dropped the ‘Mister McClain’ thing.” Hello to you too!” I smiled.

She nodded and looked up from the notebook in her hands. She was dressed as the previous days and for a second I wondered if her wardrobe consisted only of black. I glanced back at the van.

“So many kinds of equipment… do you know how to operate all of this stuff? They look complicated”

“Your brain and mine work differently”

What a brat! I only tried to be friendly, but she had to act so narcissistically! This was becoming a living hell.

“Move all the equipment and boxes into the school. We will make a base in the first classroom near the hallway. ” she continued and closed her notebook, taking out a very expensive-looking laptop “I’ve already set up the tables, you carry the computers”

With that, she left to investigate the perimeter.

Last night I thought that working as her assistant wouldn’t be so bad, but now I knew for sure that I wouldn’t be killed by some ghost, but by this little bossy gremlin. For such a small person, she sure was full of personality!

I started taking out the boxes and putting them where Pidge told me the base was going to be. After almost an hour I was finished and Pidge was setting up the microphones and cameras. I was fascinated by this technology that was probably more expensive than my apartment. In every room, Pidge made me put cameras and microphones to capture sound and footage of any bizarre activity.

The building was giving me the creeps but seeing the girl so relaxed made me feel like a coward. “Aren’t you scared to go into a haunted building?”

"There's nothing to be scared of." She remarked, looking at the computer screen.

"How come you want to do this kind of work when you're only sixteen years old?"

Pidge's reply was very brief.

"Because people need it done."

"Then, there must be some cases that you couldn't solve, right?" I pressured her.

"None." Pidge smirked," Because I am capable."

  
...This girl is really full of herself. I figured anyone would start disliking her if they heard her say that. Her previous assistant must have been so patient if he was capable of staying with this brat for so long.

  
"Wow, incredible— You're beautiful and capable," I spouted out angrily.

Pidge turned around and looked at me with piercing eyes.

Shit, did I say that out loud?!

"I'm...beautiful?" she teased me with a small smile.

I felt myself blushing at her question. She was not the typical girl I looked at, but she wasn’t bad looking either. Her petite frame made some underestimate her, but she wanted to prove otherwise.

“I-I mean I heard some boys talk about you on the hallways… a-and you even grabbed Ina’s attention a-and she can sometimes be peaky and…” I was making a fool of myself. What was wrong with my hormones?!

“They have good taste...!” she remarked and went back to her work.

The moment was shattered in an instant. I can’t believe her! What a little over-confident and narcissist brat!

~

After setting up all the computers and wires, Pidge explained some basic information about everything.

She told me some essential stuff about ghosts and psychics and also about the technology around us.  
In every room, there was a thermometer which indicated drops in temperatures. If it becomes suddenly colder, there is usually a ghost present. The tape recorders and microphones are made to capture everything abnormal for twenty-four hours. From the base, we could monitor every sudden move or change in the classrooms. Pidge noted everything in her trusty notebook and if needed, made calculations and prognosis.

My job was to write down the temperatures every few hours and to change the tapes if necessary. An easy job if only I wasn’t in a haunted building!

We went back outside to measure the perimeter when we were interrupted by cheerful voices.

“That’s some expensive toys you have there, kids! Do you know how to use these?” A middle-aged man approached us. He had orange hair and a big moustache on his smiling face.

“Who are you?” asked Pidge, sounding a little bit pissed.

“Please excuse my uncle’s rude behaviour. My name is Allura Brooks and this is my uncle, Coran Smythe. I am a Shinto priestess and he is a monk. We were called here by the principal in order to exorcise a haunted school building, but it seems that we weren’t the only ones.” a very beautiful woman, dressed in a red and white traditional outfit said. She had long and white hair, in contrast with her delicate and dark skin. She looked like a majestic doll...

The man called Coran snorted and laughed joyfully. “The principal didn’t think this young lady was skilled enough to solve this problem, so he called some professionals!”

Pidge rolled her eyes at that remark.

Allura looked at her uncle angrily and smiled at us. I decided to introduce ourselves. “I’m Lance McClain, a student at this school, working temporarily under this ghost hunter, Pidge Gunderson. She’s the owner of all these expensive technologies.”

Allura nodded and continued towards Pidge. “I think the principal worried too much, calling in so many people for a little school building…”

Like a ghost that had been summoned, the principal appeared in our sight, followed by another figure.

Allura sighed “Don’t tell me that is another psychic...”

The principal was chatting amiably with the other person. He was taller than Iverson, with dark skin and an orange bandana around his head. He, at least, wasn’t wearing some silly outfit. As the principal noticed us, he frowned. Iverson rarely smiled. He was a strict and stressful man. Nobody liked him and I was pretty sure he liked nobody.

"Ah, everyone is together." He quickly stepped this way. "Here's the other guest. Let me introduce you guys."

  
...What, so it is another psychic...

"This is Hunk Garret, please welcome him, everybody."

Hunk smiled sweetly. ”Hello everybody, I’m Hunk, a catholic priest!”

My face dropped. He didn’t look older than me and Pidge! How could he be a priest already!?

The principal laughed and ran off. His face really said ‘what a bunch of weirdos’ And to be honest, we were a group of weirdos: a brat ghost hunter, a crazy monk, that didn’t look like a monk, a miko with an angel’s face and a priest. And then there’s me, who got dragged into this mass because of a stupid camera.

After introductions were over, everybody decided to do their own thing. Allura and Coran started preparing to do a cleansing. Pidge didn’t want to get associated with anyone, but Hunk insisted on helping us with the scannings and readings.

Hunk and I became fast friends. I was finally happy to have someone else to spend time with. Pidge didn’t talk too much and being near Hunk was amazing.

The job started getting better.

~

Pidge made me sit and watch the monitors while she calculated the differences in temperatures. I saw Coran in one of the labs, chanting some mantras, concentrating on his prayers. On the other screen I could see Allura. And on the last screen…

“Pidge, there is someone in the hallway!!” I screamed. The person looked so pale that for a second, I thought he was one of the ghosts of the dead students.

“W-Who’s that?”

Not acknowledging my question, Pidge rose and headed towards the door. Her expression didn't change at all, remaining cold and emotionless.

The door opened.

The dead-looking boy stood in the middle of the darkness. He was a little bit shorter than me, with black hair and deep blue-grey eyes. He, like Pidge, didn’t know that other colours besides black existed. He thankfully had a red jacket, so kudos for that. He had that emo look if you asked me.

Pidge forced a smile on. "The principal must really want us to finish the job quickly since he went as far as inviting you..."

The boy’s expression didn't change.

"Do you two know each other?" I asked.

"No. I only recognize his face because he's very popular," Pidge replied.

"Who is he?" Though I was obviously asking Pidge, the boy opened his mouth and answered me instead. "If you're talking about me, then I'll introduce myself. I'm Keith Kogane."

"Who?" I didn't know a celebrity by that name. Keith shot me an offended look.

Pidge sighed. "He's a very famous psychic medium. He's great at summoning spirits”

"Summoning spirits?"

"Ignorant, aren't you?" the medium rolled his eyes.

"I'm not talking to you—" I started, but Hunk cut me off with a peaceful look "It's like calling spirits out and letting them possess your body and speak."

Pidge looked at the spirit medium.

"What is your evaluation of this building, Mister Kogane?"

The psychic medium cocked his head in confusion. "I'm not sure... Who are you? You don't seem to be a psychic..."

"I'm a ghost hunter, Pidge Gunderson." She shook his hand.

I was shocked. She just made an absolute change. What was that, Pidge? Do you just go for pretty faces? You don't speak to me with *that* kind of attitude. I looked and Keith furiously.

The psychic medium looked at Pidge again with a surprised expression. 

"Have we... Met before?"

Oh. What an old pickup phrase. I internally face-palmed. I need to teach this boy some new tricks...!

"I think this is the first time we met."

"...Really...?" he said, turning around to face the pile of equipment. He thought for a second, then, very determined, said:

"...I don't think there are ghosts here. Even though the principal was in a panic over it, there's nothing here. I also don't feel the presence of any kind of spirits."

"Really..." Pidge said, contemplating his words. She looked over her notes again.

...Does Iverson want to tear down this building that much? Is the old school building really that scary?  
A ghost hunter, a priestess, a monk, an exorcist, and even a famous psychic medium. He makes it seem so serious by inviting so many people. Just because of the old school building rumours. But these people...

Do they really have that kind of ability?

  
It happened at that time.

A loud, knocking sound and a woman's scream echoed through the building. We were frightened for a moment.

"Is that Allura’s voice?" Hunk asked.

Pidge rushed out of the room and we followed. We bumped into Coran right after we left the base.

"That sound just now...!" Coran exclaimed. I could see the worry and fear on his face.

"I'm not sure, but it seems to be on the first floor," Hunk replied.

Allura’s scream echoed through the hallway from the west side of the first floor on the other side of the lab room.

"What happened?!" Pidge was the first to reach the door, but she couldn't open it no matter how hard she pulled. Allura banged on the door from inside.

"Open the door! Hey, open the door!"

Both Hunk and Coran pulled with all their strength. The door started to bend, but it still wouldn't budge. "Let's kick it open," Coran suggested as he faced the door. "Allura! Move away!"

He kicked the door, causing it to emit a snapping sound. After one more kick, the door was knocked down. Allura embraced her uncle, finally feeling safe again.

"What happened?" Pidge asked calmly.

"I don't know... After I came in, the door shut by itself. I couldn't open it." She cried silently. “I panicked and…”

"How embarrassing..." Keith smirked down at the priestess.

Allura looked up at him, offended. "What do you mean?"

"How can you say you're a psychic? You start hollering like crazy when the door locks on you. Don't you think that's sort of embarrassing?" Keith taunted, his tone cold like the wind.

“What is your problem man?” I shouted, “Don’t you have a little sympathy?” Keith glanced at me without interest. What a jerk! I decided I didn’t like this guy.

Allura sighed softly, then turned towards the raven-haired boy again. "You there... Are you Keith Kogane?"

"Yes."

"You're much prettier on TV."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The rest of the group is here!!! Yay!
> 
> I really had fun imagining Allura as a Shinto priestess, because they are really pretty and graceful and I really knew it would fit her character.
> 
> As for Coran, him being a monk was a really fun idea.  
> Hunk being a priest worked very well with his personality. He is also at the start of his journey and we will see him become better at his job.
> 
> Celebrity-medium Keith? Hell yes! I wanted Keith to have this persona because I just love the idea. When I started writing I thought about Allura being the medium, but putting Keith in her place I think worked so much better!!
> 
> I wanted to stick with the characters from the anime because their powers worked very well with the plot.
> 
> As always, suggestions and ideas are always welcomed! Thanks!!


	4. Chapter 4

"Well then, we must find out exactly what's in this old school building," Allura declared. The fear in her eyes has vanished and now she was determined to solve the mystery.

We took a break in the base, drinking the canned coffee that Hunk brought.

"Aren't you being oversensitive?" Keith commented coldly.

This guy was getting on my nerves. Allura rolled her eyes.

"I'm not the same as a fake psychic who got popular just because of his looks."

A small smile brushed through Keith’s face.

"Thank you for complimenting my good looks, princess"

Hmmm— That... Reminds me of someone.

Allura continued her idea "I believe it's an earth spirit."

"An earth spirit is...?" I asked.

She looked at me understandably, but before she could answer, Keith interrupted her. "Didn't your assistant go through any training, Miss Gunderson?"

"He lacks the ability to do so in this area, nor is he worth training..." Pidge said, her finger toying with her hair.

You jerk. You must've been itching to say that. I looked at her furiously,” Hey, I’m right here!”

Allura assumed a teacher's position. "An earth spirit is one that lives in a certain place."

"Or it could be a Jibakurei!” Coran suggested."Jibakurei are bound to an area because of an event that occurred. Earth spirits are spirits of the land, known as Seirei."

So there're actually different types of spirits. The more you know!

"I really think it's a Jibakurei," Coran continued, "Didn't something happen at this old school building? A spirit must live here. It had to disrupt the workers' progress because it was scared of losing its home."

"What do you think, Hunk?" Pidge turned around to look at the priest.

"I'm not sure. If it's an earth spirit it has some kind of relationship to the land, but it could also be a ghost that could attract evil spirits to the building" Hunk explained.

I see...

"You guys don't believe it's an earth spirit?" Allura asked as she stood up.

Hunk's brown eyes were full of confusion. "It's early, we shouldn’t rush to make a conclusion without proper evidence.”

Allura continued her assumption "To sum it up, everything will be fine as long as it's exorcised. I'll get rid of it tomorrow. Maybe after that Coran can also try an exorcist and then we will be sure it’s gone"

She smiled warmly, then waved as she left the lab room with her uncle.

Hunk saw them off, then inquired about everyone's opinions. "What do you guys think?"

Keith replied, "It's no use. I already said there aren't any spirits here."

"But there are so many rumours about this place. How do you explain that?" I implored.

"You didn't see anything bad happen, did you? A building this old will always have one or two rumours. It's like the school's Seven Wonders."

Ah— What a confident tone. This boy is more and more like that other person in the room. It’s like they complement each other with their rude words. The pair of emos...

I couldn't help but retort. "Then why did the door lock on Allura?"

"That was because she was a bit confused," Keith replied in a blunt, authoritative tone.

So is that how it is…True, some people will just unconsciously open and close doors. But weren't Hunk and Coran unable to open that door even with their strength combined? This doesn’t add up... Maybe Allura was so scared when the door closed that she couldn't help but cry out in fear. But then again, she didn’t look like that kind of girl. 

The dark, crimson glow of the sunset shined through the windows.

"Pidge, it's getting dark."

The girl lifted her head towards the window. "Ah... We'll go home after the preparations are done," she said, rising from her chair. "Move the equipment into the classroom on the west side of the second floor."

After giving the orders, she looked at me. "Come here tomorrow, same hour."

"Um... Tomorrow's Sunday—"

"It doesn't matter what day of the week it is. You must work."

Uh, uh, uh. No, noooo. Come on, Sunday was the most important day of the week…

"But..."

"Then do you want to compensate me for the video camera now?"

"...I'll be ready."

Hmph. You really do act like a boss.

~

Sunday morning I was off to school. I have never imagined that I would be at school on a Sunday, and even so staying there until midnight to help a crazy girl do her ‘ghost hunting’. I energetically opened the door to the base only to notice that Pidge wasn't there yet. In front of the equipment was instead another dangerous person-Nyma Beezer.

"...What are you doing?" I asked.

"Nothing. I'm just looking around. Miss Gunderson doesn't seem to be here." The girl touched the equipment beside her.

"It's best if you don't touch anything. Pidge will get angry."

Nyma nodded, her hand still touching the TV's edge, "How were things yesterday? Wasn’t it the first day of investigations?"

"Nothing... Much. Pidge said there was nothing unusual."

"What did the others think?"

"Allura was locked in a classroom. But no one can agree on whether or not that was because of a ghost."

"Why?" Nyma asked, her eyes suddenly gazing into mine.

"...The psychic medium said there were no ghosts in this old building. But Allura and Coran insisted that there's an earth spirit here."

"Really... Is the psychic medium you're referring to Keith Kogane?"

"Yes."

"That person's an imposter. He's on TV because of his good looks. he doesn't have any psychic powers." Why did Nyma sound so jealous…" There's a ghost here, and a very strong one too."

Then why was she the only one who could feel it? The rabbit hole was growing deeper...

"I... Was just attacked. When I was walking in the corridor, a force suddenly pushed me down the stairs. “she said showing me a nasty bruise on her arm.

"That... Can't be."

"It's true," she insisted, "I even heard a voice telling me, 'Your psychic power is too strong. You're in the way.'."

Before she could continue, the door opened to reveal a bored Pidge. She looked at us. "What's the matter?"

After she heard Nyma retell her story, Pidge thought about it for a while, taking some notes in her black notebook. "When did that happen?"

"Just now. At first, I was scared, but then I saw all this equipment, and I gave it a second thought. I just got here...”

Pidge placed her pale fingers onto the laptop's keyboard, deep in thought. "Let's look at the recording. Where did you encounter the ghost?"

"The corridor on the second floor."

Pidge rewound the recording. A view of the corridor showed up on all ten TV screens, with digital numbers lined up on the side. These changing numbers recorded the time. When the time was "8:34 ", a soft stepping sound could be heard. Nyma showed up in front of the corridor. Stiff and prudent, she carefully looked around, then went up the stairs. After she reached the top of the stairs, it happened. A white line suddenly flashed onto the screen. Two times. Three times. Then it was just static, followed by a white screen. Then the screen turned all black.

"What happened—It broke—" I looked confused at the monitors than at my boss.

Pidge looked at the other screens. There was nothing wrong with the other ones. Only the stairs recording was blank.

"...It didn't break," Pidge said as she fiddled with one of the TVs, but the screen didn’t change. "What does this mean," she mumbled to herself. "Right after the ghost shows up, the camera stops working," she said, looking at the ceiling, "what can this be… a ghost, interference with electric waves... Or..." She contemplated her ideas, then quickly turned to face Nyma. "Miss Beezer, you said you heard a sound. What kind of sound was it?"

"It was unclear, but it sounded like a man’s."

"Really..." she nodded. Her eyes were looking at the emptiness of the black screen, full of questions and curiosity. They were mesmerizing…

"Hey, Pidge? Didn't Keith say there weren't any spirits here? So how can that be?"

"About that... we can believe him..."

Nyma cocked her head. "Does Kogane really have psychic powers?"

"Normally... mediums have different wavelengths. Maybe your wavelength is the same as that of the ghost. Girls are usually known to have a bigger wavelength than usual when it comes to mediums. Maybe you are more powerful then Keith… “

Nyma couldn't help but laugh, "Perhaps."

At this time, numerous footsteps came from the entrance hall. Coran, Hunk and Keith. In the front was Allura, clothed in her priestess garments. Her exorcism started.

~

We watched on one of the monitors as Allura, dressed in a very beautiful outfit, preformed her exorcist. She clapped her hands, waving a stick with white slips of paper attached, in front of a white altar

 _“_ _Takaamahara_ _Ni Kami Tsumari masu._ _  
Kamurogi_ _Kamuromi no Mikoto wo Mochite”_

Wow— What is she saying? I couldn’t understand a thing, but seeing the young girl perform so beautiful was amazing...

" _Sumemioya_ _Kamu Izanagi No Mikoto_..."

I quietly whispered to Pidge "What... Is... She saying?"

The girl’s face said I was disturbing her. "It’s a Norito, a Shinto prayer. Now be quiet"

Ah... I still don't understand... I carelessly fell asleep halfway through the ceremony. Man, Hunk fell asleep right at the beginning, so it should be no problem if I do this too…

~

"Now there should be nothing to worry about. Our work here is finished."

Allura smiled while she talked with Coran after the ceremony. But, It's still best to check over things right after the exorcism is completed," the girl continued. Right as she said that…

...Creak.

Suddenly a loud sound came from the ceiling.

Crack.

The sound of something breaking.

And at the same time, the light bulb on the door shattered, along with the windows.

Bang.

White smoke rushed out. Right afterwards, window glass shards shot towards us.

"Didn't you say there was nothing to worry about?" Nyma sneered at Allura, "How should I say this... You simply can't exorcise spirits."

Allura glared at her for a moment but didn't say anything. She walked towards the glass shards. 

"That was just an accident," Keith coldly pointed out.

Allura nodded in agreement. "Of course. My exorcism..."

"...was unsuccessful in exorcising spirits. Because there were none to start off with," Keith finished off.

Things got very confusing for me. I didn’t know who or what to trust.

Turning his head, Hunk asked, "Could it be a coincidence?"

Coran replied, "What if something is here? Let's say something so strong that my niece couldn't get rid of it?"

Pidge lowered her head. "...If that were the case, the equipment would be responding." I could see she was also trying to make sense of the situation.

Ah— I'm getting anxious too. It would be nice if I were a psychic too. If that were the case, then I'd quickly find out what kind of spirit it is and then exorcise it. I looked blankly at the screens. I inadvertently noticed something strange on the second floor on the west side of the classroom. The equipment that I placed there yesterday.

I remembered that the class had many disorganized rows of old tables and chairs in front of the blackboard.

...But...

"Pidge," I broke off Pidge’s conversation with Coran.

"What's wrong?"

I pointed at the TV screen. "There's a chair in the middle of the room. It wasn't there yesterday. There were no chairs in that area."

Pidge raised her glasses to look at the screen, then asked the psychics behind her, "Did anyone go to the classroom on the west side?"

They all looked at each other before answering, "No we didn't...?"

~

While everyone was watching, Pidge rewound the recording, replaying the video.

We could all see the classroom on the west side, and then the chair moving suddenly. There was no one there to touch it or push it. In front of the blackboard, the dusty chair started moving little by little, until it reached the middle of the room.

"How did that happen?" I raised my head, asking Pidge. She was deep in thought, looking intensely at the monitor

"...I'm not sure."

Upon hearing Pidge’s reply, Nyma declared from behind, "Is it a poltergeist?"

What was that? Upon seeing my confusion, she continued "It means ‘noisy spirit.’ Like when an object moves or a sound is produced. —Right, Miss Gunderson?"

"Right. You seem to have a clear understanding of this."

"This is common sense."

...sorry I don't have common sense.

"I don't think this is a poltergeist," she stated.

"Why?"

"Objects moved by poltergeists are usually warm."

"Is there a problem...?"

"According to the thermography, that chair's temperature did not rise. This kind of thing never happens."

Nyma was dumbstruck.

Hunk turned towards the boss. "Aren't there other conditions that would categorize this as a poltergeist? I’ll have to agree with Nyma on this”

Pidge smiled slightly. "Tisane."

"What's that?" Allura asked.

Keith shot a look of contempt at the priestess. "Are you really a psychic?"

Annoyed, Pidge explained, "Of course, Mister Kogane would know. E.Tisane, a French officer, classified poltergeists."

"Huh?" I sighed. Looking around, I noticed that Coran didn't seem to know about this either. Nyma just looked clueless. Why did Keith have to act so cocky around everyone? So what if he knew about this Tisain or whatever.

"There are nine categories in total. Explosions, opening and closing of doors, noises, knocking... Out of the nine conditions, three occurred here: a door closing by itself, a moving object, and a shattered window. That isn't enough to qualify this as a poltergeist haunting."

Unable to hold back my question any longer, I asked, "So the thing that attacked Nyma was...?"

Suddenly Coran asked, "What did you say?"

...Ah— We didn't tell them about Nyma’s’ incident yet.

Since I accidentally spouted it out, she had no choice but to explain again. Meanwhile, Pidge carefully re-examined the TV that didn't record the incident, taking some notes.

"Keith, what do you think?" Coran asked after the story

"She tripped because she was thinking too much," Keith quietly replied.

The girl glared at him. "I didn’t trip. Why don't you admit it? There's an evil spirit in the old school building and you can’t feel it."

Keith silently stood up.

"Are you going to run away?"

"Run away? Why would I run?" he glared at the girl "I'm just going to look over this place again...There are no ghosts in the old school building," Keith calmly repeated before walking out of the classroom.

Hunk looked at Keith's figure as he left. "It seems like he got quite a blow there."

"Of course," Pidge replied, "psychics can see things that normal people can't. If you mess up, then you can't be considered a psychic anymore."

Oh— Are you covering up for him? So she really goes only after pretty faces…

"You just go for pretty faces."

For a second I thought that I said this out loud, but to my relief, it was just Nyma.

"Why do you say that?" Pidge shot a cold stare at her direction.

"Aren't you covering up for him?" she asked furiously.

"He has been remarkably successful in his job. I'm just giving him the respect he deserves. I read about many of his cases and they all have been solved strictly and successfully."

...Huh? I couldn’t believe her! She only treated Keith with respect because he is the only one who deserved it! Every minute I hated him more and more.

Allura giggled, "Well, we think you should treat us with some respect too."

"I would if your abilities were as high” Pidge replied in a cold tone.

...You bastard, you really do treat us differently.

Crack.

The sound of wood breaking.

Thump.

A loud knocking sound came from the ceiling.

Coran looked at the surroundings, "A rapping sound?"

A chill ran down my back.

Crack... Thump...

The sounds are from the west side of the ceiling.

Crash

Along with the faint cracking sounds, a loud, splitting sound shot through the air from the west side.

Followed by a piercing scream.

The room was completely silent again.

Suddenly, Hunk shouted, "Keith!"

Eh?

Jumping out of nowhere, he rushed towards Pidge’s TV screen.

"Keith fell from the second floor!"


	5. Chapter 5

After Keith fell from the second floor, an ambulance came and rushed him to the hospital. He was lucky he fell onto soft ground and not onto the remaining metal pipes. The classroom where he has last been was old and it had no wall on the west side.

"Exactly what happened?" Iverson questioned Pidge, "I called you here so you could exorcise the ghost. Before, your assistant was injured, and now someone else is injured!"

Pidge interrupted the principal. "My assistant was injured because of a brainless student of yours."

...Are you talking about me? Brat!

"Before Mister Kogane shifted into unconsciousness, he insisted that there are no ghosts here. He said this was an accident due to his carelessness. Don't worry. I will go back and continue to investigate."

Pidge assured Iverson everything will continue as planned, then left for the old school building.

"That's just Keith being stubborn," Allura asserted, back in the base. "I think there's a ghost here," she repeated," I admit it. My exorcism failed. This place is dangerous."

I couldn't help but ask, "Dangerous?"

Allura crossed her arms in frustration. "If an exorcism fails, the ghost will act like an injured bear: it'll act fierce..."

"Then, it's your fault Keith’s injured!"

"No, it's not!"

Pidge interposed. "Don't jump to conclusions. The camera recording revealed it as an accident. It's exactly what Mister Kogane said: he was careless."

True. Keith didn't seem to know that the wall wasn't firm. He didn't know it was only supported by a rotten wooden plank. He accidentally leaned on the wooden plank, making it crack. The camcorder recorded the entire incident.

Still... it gave me the creeps.

Pidge crossed her arms, contemplating the matter deeply."... This building is strange. I don't understand."

"Why?" Nyma asked with a blunt and frank tone.

"There have been no responses to the equipment. There have been no temperature declines, no ion deviations, and no electromagnetic wave abnormalities. All of the data appear normal."

"Then, why did Allura get locked up? Why was I attacked? Why did the camcorder recording vanish? Why did the windows break? And how come the chair moved by itself?"

"That's why I said I don't understand." Pidge frowned to the furious school girl.

Coran interrupted, "Maybe you don't know about this kind of ghost. It could be a ghost strong enough to hide its presence."

Pidge pondered the idea. "So, you think that..." she stopped for a moment and then continued "I'll withhold my opinion for now. I'm going to investigate this from a different angle…Lance."

"Yes."

"I'm going back to the van. You stay here. If anything happens, call me," Pidge said, pointing to a microphone. "This microphone is linked to the van."

"Okay."

~

Pidge left the lab room to do her business without giving us a clue about her thoughts.

Coran asked Allura, "What's up with this young lady?"

"What's wrong?"

"She brought in lots of expensive equipment, but does she really know what she's doing?"

"How would I know?" she whispered.

Hunk stood up. "My turn."

"Do you need help with anything?" I asked him.

"No. But when I start praying, keep an eye on the equipment. There might be a response."

"Okay."

The TV screen gave a view of a room on the second floor that was rumoured to have a ghost. It was also the room where Keith fell down from. The sunset's afterglow shined into the classroom. Suddenly the TV's connection was cut, leaving the screen filled with static. Something was wrong with the video camera. Even the angle it was recording from changed.

In a panic, I quickly fumbled for the microphone that was connected to Pidge’s car. "Pidge”

"What's wrong Lance?"

"The TV screen is all static."

"That's all right. Once it's dark, the videocam changes its recording mode. How's the situation?"

"Hunk said he's going to perform his exorcism... Ah, he's here."

He changed into priest robes, which looked great on him. Walking into the classroom, he lifted a cup filled with water. He dipped his finger in the water and drew a cross on the altar with it. After he drew the sign of the cross on the wall, he placed some grey candles, and a cross onto the platform. The room brightened after he lit up the candles. Then Hunk placed his hands together, bowed his head, and prayed.

A faint sound came from the microphone. "Heavenly God, please allow us to worship you."

He scattered the water. So that must be holy water. Then he opened his bible.

"God, your soul becomes our heaven and the earth."

There was nothing out of the ordinary.

"In the beginning was the word. The word was with God. The Word was God..."

After constantly staring at the TV screen, Coran finally stood up. "I'm going out for a walk." Allura followed her uncle out. Maybe they wanted to discuss the case privately.

Now that I’m alone, I can’t help but feel a little scared.

~

The sky grew darker and darker.

The light from the TV screens was the only thing that kept the room from being swallowed up in darkness. Even though there are lots of monitors, the room was still dark. Coran was on the screen, walking in the corridor of the first floor. Dressed in monk robes, he strolled towards the room on the far left, his hand holding an object. Hunk continued to perform his exorcism in the classroom above.

"The word was with God in the beginning. Through Him, all things were made."

Hunk suddenly stopped praying and started looking around.

...What happened? I increased the volume of the speakers. In the middle of Hunk's prayer, a snapping sound could be heard.

"It's a noise made from a poltergeist..." I stated.

He constantly lifted his head to look at the ceiling.

The ceiling...

"Ah!" I shouted. I looked at the classroom ceiling on the west side, near the room with the wooden plank. It's right under the room where Keith fell from. The wood on the ceiling was bending. It's almost like something's trying to penetrate through the ceiling.

I suddenly pounced up from my chair and rushed out of the base. When I was almost near the room Hunk was in, I heard a loud cracking sound. I forcefully slid the door open, leaving a surprised priest staring at me.

"Hunk, it's dangerous. Come out now!"

Not even a second passed after I pointed toward the crack in the ceiling that the ceiling came crashing down, rocking the floor. With the candle knocked over, the room was pitch black.

~

The rubble covered up the entire classroom. Pieces of wood and stone were scattered all over the floor...The west side of the roof completely collapsed.

"If Lance didn't call me, I would've been in big trouble, maybe with broken bones, "Hunk said, his voice quivering slightly.

Pidge picked up a piece of rubble and examined it. She looked like she was in a trance.

"Since this place is dangerous, let's go down instead," Coran advised, a hint of nervousness in his voice.

Allura crossed her arms in a cold manner. "...I think we should leave for today...we’ll continue tomorrow."

"Your right” Pidge stated silently. ”Lance, you can go home”

We were all ushered out of the building by her. She waved to us from the entrance hall. "Good-bye."

"Pidge, what about you? You're not going home? It is dangerous to remain here all alone.”

"I have to investigate more."

I think if she could, she would marry her work. Nobody dared to tell her anything more, so we all left under her gaze.

~

The next day, I went to school right after I got up. I hope Pidge was safe. I was kind of worried. She just stayed in the old school building by herself and I wouldn’t even resist more than 1 hour alone in that haunted place. Once I was in the old school building, I went directly towards the base. Nearly half of the equipment was carried out, and the remaining ones weren't recording anything either.

What happened?

I ran outside and went directly to the van. I peered into the car and to my relief, Pidge was leaning on the equipment, fast asleep. Gosh, how cuter can she get? She was sleeping in a very uncomfortable position, but still managed to look like an angel.

LANCE?? What was I THINKING!!

I knocked on the car window. “Pidge!” She opened her eyes slightly, apparently still in a daze from sleeping. She wasn’t wearing her glasses and I could see her eyes more clearly. Their colour was captivating -a combination of brown and gold- and they stopped my breath. I felt my face getting warmer.

"...Lance."

"Good morning. I made coffee. Do you want some?" I offered.

"You are hardly ever this sharp." Can't you at least say thank you? Forget it. I'm used to it anyway. Her beauty vanished when she started spitting her acid. I took out the coffee that I brought with me and poured it into a cup, then handed it to her. "Last night, did you find anything?"

"Yes."

...Eh? I really wasn't expecting a yes. The tone in her voice seemed to say that there was more.

"Ah, do you know what's wrong with the building?"

"Yes." Pidge’s face was stoic. Right when I was going to ask more questions, I was interrupted by the rest of the team calling out our names. The others had arrived and started asking about the missing equipment.

"Are you getting ready to leave?" Allura inquired.

Pidge calmly replied, "Yes."

"...Are you kidding?" the miko looked surprised.

"No, that's why I started bringing back my equipment."

Silence ensued. Then, everyone started talking again.

Pidge placed a hand on her forehead. "Please don't be so loud to someone who just woke up... I just went to sleep a little while ago and I wasn’t able to get my beauty sleep."

Huh... Did she stay up all night?

Coran stared at her. "...Then why are you putting all your equipment back?"

"I've decided that this case has been solved."

"You exorcised the ghost?" the monk asked.

"No." She slowly picked up her files and handed them to Coran.

"What's this?"

"Last night, the old school building sank almost 1 centimetre."

"What did you say?"Coran took the graphs from her and carefully examined them. "Land subsidence." He read.

Pidge reached into her files and took out a sheet of paper. "A level scale graph, a geological diagram, and a water-course diagram," she muttered, placing each diagram beside her.

"What're those?" I asked.

"If you look at them, you will know."

We gazed intensely at the diagrams.

Man— I really don't understand these diagrams! Why did she have to make things so complicated!

She stretched. "The school was built on moist land. The workers had placed fresh soil on this land in an attempt to lessen the moisture before the school was built. Based on the number of wells around the area, there is a big water vein running beneath the school. Now only two wells remain, both of which are dry. This is what I discovered yesterday."

"Huh?"

"What I'm saying is, the building is weak because it was built on damp soil. Furthermore, the water vein is almost dry. Because of these factors, the building is sinking at an alarming rate. The area that is sinking the fastest is..." she pulled out another diagram and pointed at blue circles that indicated areas that were falling apart. "Over here. The building is sinking rapidly on this side of the building, and as a result, the rest of the school is becoming unstable and distorting. Even though the principal wants to tear down the building, there really is no need. The old school building will come down in a matter of time."

Everybody fell silent.

Corn disappointedly lowered his arm. "What, so you're saying the chair moved and the ceiling fell because of this?"

"Correct. The classroom on the west is 8 centimetres lower than the one on the east."

"Then the ghost sounds... Were they also-?" Allura asked.

Pidge nodded. "Those weren't sounds made by ghosts. Those were sounds made by the building falling apart."

"...Stop playing with me. Then are you saying we were in a dangerous place like that?" the priestess continued.

"Apparently, yes."

"Then it's really dangerous. Tell the principal to make that building off-limits to everyone " Hunk said.

"You’re right," Pidge said in an icy tone. "Inform the principal that the old school building is to be off-limits to everyone. It will collapse soon."

~

In the afternoon, when Pidge and I finished putting the equipment back, Nyma came.

"...What happened?" she asked, observing the scene and I explained the situation to her.

"Since this building was built on damp soil, it's not very sturdy and is now falling apart. That's why it seems that ghosts are here."

"But... Then, what about the ghost who attacked me?" the girl asked, her gaze turning to Pidge.

That's... How can that be explained?

The girl coldly replied, "Perhaps it is a wandering spirit that follows you around."

"...How can that be," my classmate said. "Then, are you done with your work?" she pressed.

"Not yet. I will be after I finish writing my report today."

...It's all over.

That's right. Pidge is a ghost hunter who came here to investigate the old school building. Nadia and Ina will be disappointed. We'll never see her again. I think I’ll miss her…-Actually no, I can finally escape her acid remarks. Finally, I won’t be made stupid every hour of the day. So happy…

"I still think there's a ghost here," Nyma insisted.

"There is none."

"How confident. This place may have land subsidence, but a ghost could still be here." The class rep was stubborn, unwilling to accept Pidge’s words.

"There are none. My investigation has shown me that there are no ghosts here."

"You could've made a mistake."

"Miss Beezer." There it is again. That cold look in her eyes. Nyma is sailing on dangerous waters, the boss doesn’t like to be contradicted. "Well then, you can exorcise it. I believe my work here is done, so I'm packing up."

I whispered, "This sucks."

"Because I'm about to leave?"

...Who said it was about you! I hate you!!

"You brat! Why would I feel sad about you leaving! Stop joking around! You're just a..."

And at that time...

Crack..!

A sharp sound. The windows in front of us cracked.

"Lance! Get away!" Pidge shouted.

You didn’t have to tell me a second time! The building's falling, but my legs won't move. The windows shattered, with the glass flying out the window because the curtains prevented them from flying at us. And at the same time, there was a knocking sound.

A knocking sound...? No, it can't be… this feeling. This is...the sound of someone knocking on the wall...Who's doing this?! Who's making this loud noise?!

"What's happening?" shouted Allura as she ran into the room.

"...Is it collapsing...?" asked Pidge hesitantly. This was the first time I heard her speak without confidence.

Who can be knocking on the wall so hard? The sound seemed to be coming from all directions. And with each knock, the building shook.

"Is someone knocking on the wall?"

The boss didn't answer Allura’s question.

Bang!

Suddenly the door shut itself. It was scary, especially since it happened right after the glass windows had shattered. The door opened and closed by itself, no one touching it. When the door closed one more time, the windows completely shattered, covering Nyma’s body.

Pidge grabbed my hand, then turned to help Nyma stand up. She opened a window and motioned to it. Then she turned to Allura. "Go outside!"

"Through the window?!" she cried out in panic.

"Now's not the time to fight!"

I went through the window since it was impossible to go through a constantly moving door like that.

Pidge grabbed Allura’s hand.

"Hold on!" she protested.

Not listening to her pleas, Pidge continued to pull Allura. Then she looked at me, shouting: "Hurry up and run! It's not safe!"

...The building was falling apart. The knocking sound on the wall, the door opening and closing... I wonder what's doing all this. If it's not because this building is crumbling, then it must be...

Holding Nyma’s hand, I ran away from the building.

~

We quickly ran out of the building, followed by Coran and Hunk. Afterwards, the building became quiet. We gazed at the old school. The sounds had stopped. We were finally able to think about what happened.

I felt a sharp pain in my hand. I looked down and noticed the cuts and scratches in my palm. Was this from when I climbed out the window? How's Nyma? The glass practically shattered into her. When I turned to look at her, I saw the gashes on her body.

"Are you okay?"

Noticing little pieces of glass in her hair, I reached my hand out and removed them. "Don't move. Are there any glass shards in your clothes?" Allura wiped off some of the girl’s blood with a handkerchief.

Coran looked at Pidge. "...What was that?" She didn't reply. She just gazed at the old school building, a dazed look in her eyes.

"Was that ground subsidence?" he asked.

"I wonder..." she mumbled to herself.

"What the hell?! Didn't you say that there're no strong poltergeists here!" Allura yelled.

Pidge had nothing to say. Her hand was crimson red. In order to help us escape, she received serious injuries.

"Pidge... Your hand," I said. She needed to bandage that nasty scar immediately "Huh?" She looked at her hand, finally noticing her injury. "It's okay. It's not a big deal."

I wanted to say more, but I was cut off by Allura "Can land subsidence do that? That sound wasn't from rotting wood. That was the sound of someone knocking on the wall."

Coran patted the dust off of his clothes. "It looks that the young lady was wrong, after all."

Pidge was silent. She just looked at the old school building with empty eyes. It seemed like she was hit right in her pride, her face was void of feeling,

"I wonder... Get back to work."

"Pidge?" I asked.

"Hm?" She said in an empty tone, not even looking at me

"If you don't treat your hand..." The glass must've pierced a big blood vein. Blood flowed down her left hand and dripped off her fingertips, leaving a pool of crimson on the ground.

"It's all right. It'll clot soon."

"But..." I couldn't say it. Pidge didn't even turn around to look at me. Her tone was cold, and her face expressionless.

"Help bandage Nyma’s wounds."

"Okay." Was all I could say. There was no point in fighting with her when she was in this condition.

"As of now, I need to calm down. I hate myself so much I could throw up."

I felt bad for her. Her assumption was wrong from the start and she didn’t accept it until it was too late…

~

After Pidge left to do god knows what, Hunk and I had to put the equipment in the base and to set up the cameras in the classrooms again. We placed the 24-hour tape recorders on the west side of the building, the place where Nyma was attacked, and the lab room.

Coran and Allura were patrolling the building, cleansing it.

...Is the boss coming back tonight? I sat on the stairs, pondering this until I noticed a figure walking down the entrance hall.

"Pidge?"

The figure came closer. It was my classmate, not my boss.

"Nyma…" I called out.

She looked around, "How's the situation? Did Miss Gunderson come back?"

“No…and I don’t know where she is…" after a moment of silence, I continued," You said there're ghosts here. What kind are they?"

She cocked his head. "I saw many ghosts of injured people here."

"...Is that it? Do you have any evidence of that?"

I started thinking about it.

There're so many scary rumours about the old school building. But in the end, a rumour is a rumour. I don't have psychic powers so I can't tell if someone who died in this building is still lingering here as a ghost. And the stories are different from each other so what’s the truth. Keith’s words echoed in my mind ’ _There are no spirits in the school’._

"What's wrong?" she asked as she looked at me.

"I was thinking that there really are no ghosts here."

"I said I saw them."

"...True...but…" I contemplated the matter again. Allura was coming down the stairs.

"...Was the exorcism successful?" asked Nyma.

"Is that any of your business?" the priestess retorted coldly.

"Pidge said that... My wavelength is the same as the ghost's."

"Really? Is her word reliable now?"

...So rude.

Allura looked at us. "The exorcism is over. Coran and I finished the job”

"That's what you said last time, and you weren't successful then," Nyma retorted.

Allura seemed to flare up. "This time it was successful. Now there are no ghostly phenomena."

"The exorcism was unsuccessful," the girl persisted.

"Eh? Why do you say that?" Allura’s eyes were stern and hard.

"I can feel it. There's still a lot of ghosts..."

The girl snickered. "You start to get on my nerves. Why don’t you do it yourself if you say that your powers are so high!”

The two glared at each other.

After hearing Nyma say the exorcism was unsuccessful, Coran snickered. “Kid all you do is talk. We did all we could for this place...”

Turning around, I noticed Hunk was looking up at the ceiling.

Hmm? What's that? A stepping sound?

Footsteps from the second floor...

Stomp stomp stomp...

Someone's running up and down.

Coran looked up. "What kind of sound is it...?"

"Sounds like someone running..." Allura replied, looking at us.

Who's making that sound...?

As the footsteps came closer and closer, we all stood up.

Step. Step. Step. The footsteps were on the stairs now. They were coming down, towards us. Step. Step. Step. Whoever was making the sounds must be on the platform now, so I looked up and saw...nothing…

Everyone else looked up too, but then the footsteps stopped.

The room was filled with silence.

In a rush, Hunk ran up the stairs, looked at the platform, then came down.

"Was anyone there?"

"...No."

"Well, what about those footsteps we heard?"

"Maybe we heard wrong."

"Heard wrong? How can we hear wrong? I was listening very carefully. We all heard them"

"It's just the wind." Suggested Allura.

NO! Would Pidge use a sorry excuse like that? These were all excuses. And they think they are better than her! Furious, I glared at Coran and Allura. They turned away.

At this time, the sound of a door opening and closing came from the second floor.

Bang! Bang!

It sounded as if the building would come crashing down. Then came the ghostly sounds. Such rough footsteps... It sounds like an army is up there, running around. Every door in the building banged, opening and closing by itself.

The floor started to sway.

Suddenly the fluorescent light we put up earlier on the ceiling cracked open, and little pieces of glass fell.

We scrambled away into the entrance hall and corridor.

I stood in the entrance hall, then turned around and saw the bookshelf swaying. A loud cracking sound came from it. I pushed against the bookshelf to keep it from falling. Not sure why I did though. But it's probably because I was scared it'd fall. Why did bookshelves always fell on top of me??

As I pushed against the bookshelf, I realized it was warm. Warm as hot water.

...Didn’t Pidge say something like this earlier?

Objects that poltergeists touch will be warm to the touch...

Wobbling and swaying, the bookshelf fell on me. I tried to block it, but it was too heavy and I soon crumbled under its weight.

I screamed.

...And then, everything was black…


	6. Chapter 6

My head hurts.

The cool wind brushed against my cheeks... This feels so good. When I thought of it that way, I woke up. My eyes fluttered open. I was in a small, dark place. When my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I realized I was on the ground. I wanted to get up, but I didn't have the energy to…That's right. The bookshelf fell on me. Yeah, that's it. This must be a curse that the injured assistant cast upon me.

I was so dizzy…my head was spinning and my gaze was hazy. That's weird. ...Who moved me here? I hope I'm not alone. Then, I tried to sit up but stopped when a nauseating feeling overcame me. I quickly lay down again.

That's weird... Am I hurt?

The footsteps… the ghostly sounds…the warm bookshelf…

What happened after that? How long did I sleep? Where's everybody else...?

I felt my eyes close tightly...Right when I was determined to get up, a soft, pale hand caressed my forehead.

"Who is it..." My voice was weak.

My eyes looked up past the pale hand. In the darkness, I could hardly make out the face.

"...Pidge?" ...You came back… Thank goodness.

Pidge reassured me with a calm voice. "Don't move." My vision was blurry. Where …did her hair become a little bit shorter or was I imagining things…

She smiled warmly. I was kind of surprised. I never thought that Pidge could smile like that. Such a warm smile. "It would be great if you'd always smile like that, it suits you," I said automatically, without even thinking about it. Ah, I really don't feel so good. Pidge laughed shortly. Was her voice different…? My head hurt so much…

...I'm so tired...

Pidge shook her head. "You should rest for a while. It's best not to get up yet."

"Okay..."

...What's up with Pidge. She's being so nice and gentle...

"...Thank you."

~

...I woke up.

Looking around, I realized I was in the van. The moonlight faintly shined through. The equipment was piled up in a stack. Sleeping on this hard "bed" made my back ache.

...Pidge? Where was she? Now, where did she go? She was just here!

...Or maybe... That was just a dream.

Yeah— Just a dream.

When I started thinking about this, I bumped my head on the top of the car. Coran peered through the window, then shouted, "Hey! Are you all right kid?!"

I wasn't sure whether I was lucky or unlucky, but apparently, I was the only one who got injured. After the bookshelf fell on top of me, knocking me out, the others took me out. They shouted and shouted, but I just wouldn't come to.

Everyone gathered at the van. The night air was chilly.

"What time... Is it?" I asked.

"It's four AM. It'll be morning soon." ...Meaning, I've slept for a long time.

"What about Pidge? Is she back?"

"No."

Well— That must've been a dream...Why would I have this kind of dream?

"Thank goodness you don't have any serious injuries," Hunk said, his voice full of relief. I could see that his eyes were red. Has he been crying?

"Sorry I worried you guys."

"That was a strong poltergeist. It's the first time I encountered a serious situation like this." Coran remarked bitterly.

"What happened afterwards?" I asked.

Coran crossed his arms. "Nothing happened after that. The exorcisms didn't seem to work."

"Oh... What about Nyma?"

"She left a long time ago."

"Really..."

"As for Pidge, who knows where she ran off to. We can't rely on the exorcisms, and we can't do anything..."Allura sighed.

"Oh, so are you going to run away?" I asked her.

"...So what if I do?" she said, unwilling to admit defeat, "didn't you see how your boss ran away after that incident? She's probably at home now, trembling in fear."

...Hmph.

Coran laughed, "True that. We were mean to her yesterday, so it makes sense if she went home crying."

Stop it! That's even worse. That insufferably confident bastard. The only narcissist I respect in the world is hiding under her blanket, crying?!

"Pidge must be..." Hunk said, as his creativity sparked up as well. “She must be so furious that she's making voodoo dolls." My imagination went wild. Just thinking about that little gremlin in her blankets, making voodoo dolls made me laugh out loud.

The sky brightened, the sun's bright rays striking the school building from the east.

~

I went home, got a two-hour sleep and went back to school. I checked the van, but Pidge didn’t come back so I went to class. Nyma greeted me, asking how I was feeling. I gave her a reassuring answer and went to my sit, where I was bombarded with questions by Ina and Nadia.

“We heard yesterday you got hurt…? Are you ok??”

“I’m fine, don’t worry…Just a little scratch… Did Nyma tell you about what happened?”

“Yes” Nadia replied shortly, looking at Nyma bragging about her adventures to our classmates.” Last night we were called by Pidge,” she said with a smirk” She kept asking questions about you...”

“About ME?” I felt myself blushing. Immediately the smile from the dream came to my mind. 

“It seems lover boy Lance caught someone’s attention…”

“It’s not like that!! She is technically my boss… I must have been related to work and stuff!” I shouted embarrassed.

“Well yeah…she also asked me about Nyma…” Ina said quietly.

...Exactly what did she ask about? What is that Pidge doing, disappearing off for no reason than calling my friends asking about me and Nyma.

I was thinking about this when the teacher suddenly came in. The moment she entered, she announced, "McClain, Beezer, the principal wants to see you."

Huh?

~

Nyma and I knocked on the door, then entered the office. There were 6 people. In the middle there was Pidge. Then I saw the principal, so I waved hello to him.

"Sorry, we're late...". Then I sat in one of the chairs arranged for us. What happened? Why did they call us?

Pidge stood up. "Is everyone who was involved in this case here and accounted for?"The principal nodded in response.

She told us to relax, turned off the lights, and covered the windows with the curtains, sealing the room in darkness. A light lay on the table, flashing repeatedly. "Please look at this light."

The room flashed from light to dark with a red glow.

Pidge spoke calmly, "Look at the light. Slowly breathe in and out... Relax your shoulders..."

What a strange atmosphere. The light flashed again and again. Reality seemed to slip away in this illuminated world. We listened carefully.

Pidge's voice was calm, quiet and soft. "Listen carefully to your breathing..."

...I'm tired... I didn't get enough sleep yesterday and with the half-awake-half-asleep state I was in...

Pidge's soft voice rang through the air. I can hear the fluctuating rhythm of her voice. Such an amazing sound…

—Tonight... Something will happen...

—The chair on the second floor of the old school building... Will move by itself...

—Tonight in the old school building... In the lab room...

The lab room... Chair

......

"Okay, it's finished."

The room suddenly brightened, blinding my eyes.

"...Huh?"

"Thank you for your cooperation." Pidge said.

...The chair...

After leaving the classroom, I called out to Pidge before she could leave for the old school building. She turned around, her beautiful brown eyes gazing into mine. She's still that confident, almost like nothing had happened yesterday.

"Yesterday... Where did you go afterwards?"

"I went to many places... I heard you were injured?"

"Yeah, but nothing serious. Just a bump on my head."

"Poor you. Well, just don't get any dumber and it'll be all right."

...Why you—couldn’t you be a little more considerate?

"Hey, what was that just now?" I said.

Instead of replying, she shot a question back at me. "Aren't you going back to class?"

“No…!"

"...So you want to be an idiot."

...Jerk—

Ready to leave, I waved good-bye to her, then I watched her walk down the corridor. Now I was sure that seeing her yesterday was only just a dream…

...But, why would I have a dream like that?

...Could it be...

...Was I a masochist...

No...it's...

I...I...I must be—!

Ahhh—

~

After school, I went directly to the old building. Hunk and Pidge were already there, talking.

When she saw me, she turned to me and asked"Last night, was it you who helped set these tape recorders up?"

"Yeah... I wanted to set up the camcorders instead, but I didn't know how."

"It's quite impressive of you to do that. Nice work! There are some rather interesting sounds here."

"So the poltergeist incident from yesterday was recorded?"

"Yes, all of it."

Thank goodness.

"Ah, that's right. The bookshelf...it was warm"

"The one that fell down?"

"Yeah. That's right, objects that poltergeists touch should be warm to the touch... That's what you said before, right?"

"I'm surprised you remember so clearly." Pidge stood up, then handed me some electrical wires. "Set up the equipment in the lab room"

Luckily for me, Hunk passed by and helped Pidge instead. He carried the video camera while she carried some kind of machine I've never seen before.

"Hey, what's that?" I asked. When we reached the lab room, she placed the machine down and told me to set up the tripod. Then she walked into the room and pulled an old chair from a corner. Then she placed it in the middle of the room and started drawing a circle around it. A chair in the middle of the room... What kind of spell is that? She then went to the van to bring in more equipment. When she came back, I grabbed her shoulder.

"Hey, what are you doing this for?"

Pidge looked around the room for a place to put the camcorder. Her face was stoic. Ignoring me, she headed towards the hallway.

...What's the meaning of this, you jerk.

"Hey—Pidge, what was that? Did something happen? Tell me already," I implored.

She sighed, crossed her arms, and leaned against the wall. " You are so curious…It's a radar."

"A radar... Like the ones that airplanes use?"

"Correct."

"What are you going to do with it?"

"I can't say. If I tell you, the results will be meaningless."

"But I'm your assistant..."

"No."

Oh— Selfish brat.

"I'll tell you tomorrow so don't ask until then."

"Well, I have another question."

"What?"

"DO you know the reason behind the hauntings?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm probably not wrong..." With the exception of what she just told me, Pidge didn't say anything else. She wouldn't answer me when I asked her more questions, But she looked very confident in what was she doing. Pidge seemed unconcerned about my questions. She went ahead and started to hammer in some nails onto the window sides. After she finished, she handed markers to me and Hunk.

"Sign your name on the boards, and make sure you write big."

Oh well. I looked to the boards then signed my name on them.

"Are the windows closed?"

"Yes."

We left the lab room, and Pidge closed the door. After she nailed the boards onto the door, sealing it shut, she handed us the markers again. "Sign your name on the board." I signed my name under Hunk's signature. Afterwards, the ghost hunter walked towards her equipment and placed a cleansing tag on it. We signed our names on it again.

Then we finally left...


	7. Chapter 7

The next day I went to school early, curious to see the results of the experiment.

Pidge had arrived already. She was sitting in her van, handling something. Someone stood beside her – It was the assistant I injured! This was going to be so awkward… I walked towards the van. "Good morning." I was deeply concerned about the assistant. "Is the injury all right?"

The assistant's eyes gazed back at me. “I’m okay now, you shouldn’t worry…It was my fault for jumping in front of a falling bookshelf! At least you are alright!” he said with a smile. I felt so relieved to hear these words. At least he wasn’t like his boss.

“I’m Takashi Shirogane, but you can call me Shiro” he introduced himself and shook my hand.

Pidge opened the car door. "You're here rather early today."

"Of course I am."

That's right. Today's "tomorrow". That thing you were doing yesterday... aren't you going to tell me what it is? She looked impatient.

"Hey, so what's up? What was that thing you were doing yesterday?"

Pidge sighed. "Lance, don't you think you talk too much?"

I glared at her, offended. I was just asking, it was her own fault for keeping all of this a secret!

"Wait a while. Everyone will be here soon." She continued.

Nyma came before class started, as well as Allura, Coran and Hunk. The last one to arrive was Keith, who was released from the hospital. Everyone congratulated him on his fast recovery, and we went to the lab room to see the results of Pidge’s experiment.

"What are you going to show us today?" Coran snickered.

Pidge showed no expression on her face.” If all of you could just stay quiet and pay attention, everything would go way faster…”

When we reached the front of the lab room, I noticed the equipment were in the same place they were yesterday. Pidge called Hunk and me, "Look at the equipment. Is the paper with your signature intact?"

Sometime beforehand, Pidge had given Shiro the camcorder.

I examined the paper with our signatures. It wasn't damaged in any way, and my signature was still intact.

"Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Yes," I replied.

"Yes, it's the same as yesterday," Hunk answered.

"What about the signatures on the door? Is it your handwriting?"

"Yes." Hunk and I responded at the same time.

Pidge nodded, then proceeded to tear down the planks she had hammered onto the door yesterday. We looked with curiosity.

She entered the lab room.

...Huh?

The chair should be in that circle drawn on the floor…But instead, the chair was beside the window.

"Pidge, the chair moved," Hunk informed.

"Yes, it did," Pidge said, smiling satisfactorily.

Allura interjected, "Wait a minute. What's going on here?"

Instead of answering, the boss headed toward the camcorder. After she saw the display screen of the camcorder, she smiled. She then looked at us, a confident glint in her eyes. "Thank you for your cooperation. Tomorrow I will leave."

Eh? Ehhhhhh?

"You already told us this case was over," Allura reminded her sarcastically.

"I did say something like that."

"Land subsidence?"

But then, surprisingly, Pidge nodded, "Yes."

Coran jeered, "You better stop while you're ahead. Can land subsidence really cause all that?"

"Land subsidence is a sufficient explanation for the case the principal presented me."

"Then, what made the windows shatter? And what caused the strange noises afterwards?!" Coran and Allura asked.

"That was a poltergeist."She continued and then answered the question everyone was mentally asking "There is no need for an exorcise. I believe that would be unnecessary." Rewinding her tape, Pidge turned toward us, "Do you want to watch?"

We started to watch the recording of the chair. At first, the chair was in the middle of the room. We stared intently. The chair in the TV screen began to shake. It shook and shook, then it started to slide across the floor. There was no external force. It just moved by itself to the side of the window. It shook violently, then fell. It didn't move again. Pidge pressed the stop button.

"What... Was that just now?" I asked.

"It's just what you saw."

"The chair moved?"

"Yes, it did move."

Hunk sighed exasperatedly, "That was a very strong poltergeist! We must exorcise it immediately..."

Pidge replied coldly, "That would be unnecessary." She noticed my confusion, then proceeded to explain, "Yesterday I gave everyone an autosuggestion. It’s similar to hypnotism. The autosuggestion was that this chair would move at night."

...That flickering light...

"... Then I placed the chair here, and with Lance’s and Hunk’s help, I locked the doors and windows and hammered in the wooden planks. Afterwards, I proceeded to seal the room. This way, no one would be able to enter. If someone were to enter, we would notice."

"True." If anyone broke in, they'd have to remove the wooden planks and put new ones there, but then our signatures are there.

Pausing momentarily, Pidge looked carefully at each one of us, her eyes examining our reactions. "Poltergeist incidents are usually caused by human beings, namely those that are ten to fifteen years old. But sometimes they're caused by teenagers under a lot of stress who want to be noticed by others."

"Are you saying that could be a problem?" I asked.

"It is highly probable. However, the culprit is usually unaware of doing this."

"What?"

"In these situations, an autosuggestion will make the event actually occur."

Autosuggestion... An autosuggestion that the chair will move?

Coran interposed, "So you're saying that the chair moved because of a human?"

"Correct."

"And not because of a ghost?" asked Allura. "So the activities happening in the old school building were also caused by a human?"

"To put it simply, yes. I have not been mistaken yet."

"...Then the culprit is?" Someone who wants to feel important... Someone who wants to be noticed... A person with that strong desire... There was only one such person, and she was right in front of my eyes. Slowly, my eyes darted towards her. Everyone else looked at her too.

Nyma.

~

"...Me...?"

Her voice became shaky at first, then firm, "How can that be...!" She shook her head.

Pidge nodded her head. "You are the prime suspect."

"Are you saying that it's all because of me? That poltergeist? " fear showed in her eyes.

"There is a higher possibility that it is you than the others," Pidge said, looking at us "You are the first person to talk about the old school building. For instance, you said there were ghosts of soldiers and nurses there. But the fact of the matter is, there never was a hospital here. An air raid never occurred here, and the school was never used as a hospital before."

"How can that be..."

"—To sum it up, you were mistaken or perhaps the rumours got to you.”

"I wasn't lying!" Nyma exclaimed.

"In the beginning, I thought that you possessed psychic powers," Pidge said as she pulled out the tape recorder from under the table. "I said something like this earlier: half of poltergeist incidents are caused by humans. When the poltergeist activity occurred at the old school building, I was perplexed. The equipment did not show any presence of spirits. Plus, Mister Kogane didn't sense any."

"Yes, that's correct," Keith said, nodding his head.

"If it's not caused by a spirit, then it must be caused by a human. If this were to happen at somebody's house, then the person responsible would be whoever lives there. Let's say the people in the household get into a fight. You unconsciously believe that you get attention when you are in an argument. But... No one lives in the old school building."

Silence filled the room.

"It's also possible to take it the opposite way. The person who craves attention would be the culprit of these poltergeist activities. Meaning... The only two people who fit this description is Miss Beezer and... Lance."

...Me?! Did you just make me a suspect too?!

"If you compare the two, Miss Beezer is the more likely one. She was the only one who talked about the high school and in the short time I’ve known Lance, I didn’t get the impression he would crave this much attention. In addition, she is a girl, and females are known to show strong wavelengths even after fifteen years. "

After saying that, she stared intensely at the girl, who was already blushing furiously. "I heard that your psychic powers have made you rather popular in school. Ever since middle school, you have been admired for them."

"..."

"You mentioned earlier that there are spirits in the old school building. But... What if there really were no spirits? Instead of ghosts, it's ground subsidence. What would happen if everyone found out about this?"

Hunk replied, "Everyone would stop believing her. In the end, they wouldn't be able to trust her again."

Allura seemed to feel sorry for her too. "...So it's come to this."

"...That's right. In order for Miss Beezer to get everyone's attention, ghosts would have to exist. So, to her, ghosts must exist in the old school building."

Everyone looked at the girl.

"...What? So that's what you thought this whole time," I whispered. When Nyma raised her head, I smiled at her. Everyone wants to be special and be admired by others. Everyone wants to be unique and have the approval of others. So she wants to have the ability to sense ghosts...

"Our investigation could've made her ghost sightings invalid, which stressed her. As a result, she was unconsciously under a lot of stress. In her mind, she believed that there must be ghosts here, and that poltergeist activities must occur here. And then..."

Coran continued, "...she unconsciously made poltergeist activity."

I wondered if they were mistaken. "But can a human really do all that? Like, if a test is approaching and you want the school to collapse, even if you really want the school to collapse, it never does in the end."

"That's an ability problem."

What?

Pidge looked back at Nyma, a gentle look on her face. "I think she is a latent psychic."

"Psychic?"

"Someone who has psychic powers. Even though she is unaware of it, she may have some PK. I will explain for Lance's sake. PK is a type of psychic energy."

...Shut up, you arrogant...

"Oh..." Allura said, looking at Nyma before turning toward Pidge, "then, in that case, she felt more stressed because you mentioned ground subsidence. Then how do you explain me getting locked in that room? Did she do that too? And if she didn't, then how do you explain the static in your video? You have to be able to explain that, at least."

Keith said in a low voice, "You locked yourself in."

"What, you're saying that I forgot I locked myself in?"

"Are you saying you didn't?"

Pidge halted their argument with her hand, then turned towards Nyma. "...Allow me to explain. Now, about Miss Brooks being locked up," she said as she pulled out a nail from her pocket.

"What about it."

"It's a nail."

"I can tell it's a nail by looking. What are you trying to say?"

"This nail was sticking out the door."

...Eh?

"The reason the door wouldn't open is that this nail was stuck in it. I noticed this earlier, but I didn't believe it was necessary to mention it."

Allura grabbed the nail from Pidge and looked at it carefully.

"So someone put it there on purpose!" she said.

"Right."

"Who could've... Is it you?!" She stared at Nyma, who shrank back. I couldn't help but pat her shoulder to comfort her.

Pidge continued, "It was probably a joke. “

"Then, what about the video cam's malfunction?"

"I examined it carefully. Apparently, it's caused by a human, not a ghost."

"Did she do that too?"

"She was already there when Lance arrived in the lab room, so most likely, yes."

Allura bit her lip. Nyma shrank back, then apologized for what she did. Hunk told her in a comforting tone, "Don't worry about it, even though it did cause a lot of trouble."

"Does everyone understand now?"

Allura angrily crossed her arms. "We understand. But now what? We can't just leave like this. The principal called on us to exorcise the ghost."

"We can just say that we exorcised the ghost." Coran suggested.

"I plan to tell the principal this: There were many spirits of soldiers in the old school building. We exorcised them so now it's safe to continue the demolition project—is this okay with you, Miss Beezer?"

Nyma looked like she was about to shed tears of happiness.

Hunk said, "So now there's no problem, right?"

"That's right," Keith answered. "But I'm a little worried. How about we tell the principal the truth? Just tell him what you told us."

"She's already under a lot of pressure. There's no need to add to that, right?" Pidge responded.

...oh— you're actually really considerate.

Allura asked, "Then who gets the credit of exorcising the ghost?"

At that moment everyone became silent. Pidge calmly responded, "Everyone helped in the exorcism. Will this be alright with everybody?"

Everyone nodded in agreement. With her arms crossed, Pidge shot a sharp look at me, "Lance, don't tell anyone about this."

"Of course I won't."

Pidge suddenly lifted her camcorder and headed out the door. Everyone looked at her in surprise. She looked back at us with her deep eyes. "Aren't you going to prepare to leave?"

"Yeah, that's right," Allura said, standing up, "This wasn't exactly a really big case."

...Preparations to leave.

Hearing Pidge say that I felt really empty. I'm just a normal student. I became her temporary assistant because her original one was injured. Meaning... The thing that bought us together is gone now. Maybe we'll never see each other again. That thought made me so sad. I'll live my life, and Pidge will live hers. We'll never have a chance to see each other again… I have to say something.

I watched Pidge lift the equipment into the hallway. She turned around and looked at me, "Don't you have to go to school today?"

"I'm not going today," I replied.

Pidge immediately shot me a disdainful look.

"Why don't you put more effort into becoming smarter?"

...Why you…Why do I care about this?

I bet Pidge never even thought about us not being able to see each other again. I'd hoped she'd think about it a little. Even if it was just a short time, at least I was her assistant...Even though it wasn't anything serious.

Eh— I'm kinda angry...Why am I the only one feeling lonely?

She turned around and called out, "If you're not going to class, then help me move the equipment back."

Ah— Even in the end you can't help but make me suffer.

Without saying anything, Nyma walked back to class, hanging her head down in shame. I helped Pidge move the equipment back into the van. I really had to say something... She rolled up the last of the electrical wires and lifted it into her arms. There shouldn't be anything left in the lab room.

"Lance, you can go back to class now."

...Okay...

You... You really don't feel it at all. Ah, I really hate you!

"Well then, I'm going back to class," I declared.

"Okay."

"Are you going to see me off?" I softly asked.

"Why would I?" ...Why? What do you mean why?

"There's no need to. You better hurry and get to class. If you get any dumber, not even the best medicine can help you." she smirked.

...You jerk! Really now. I get it now! I definitely won't think about you, you idiot—

~

A few days later, the demolition workers restarted to tear down the part of the building left standing. At the same time, rumours of Nyma's psychic abilities spread throughout the school...

~

"Hey, what's Pidge doing now?" asked Nadia.

I gazed at the window. "I don't have any reason to think for her," I replied.

"Man— You're being so cold," Nadia said depressingly.” Ever since last week, when the investigation finished, you become so sad…”

I don't want to think about Pidge right now. I'm only coping with this because you guys keep blabbering on and on about it.

"Hey Lance..." Ina called, walking toward me.

"Don't bother me," I said, looking away.

"Wait, just hear me out. You should look for her phone number..."

Don't bother me! I don't want to hear it anymore. I almost felt like crying. "She has nothing to do with me," I insisted. "You two can go on fawning over her over there."

Suddenly the intercom came on.

"Lance McClain of class 10-E, please report to the principal's office."

...What happened? I thought about what will happen in the principal's office. Was I in trouble?

"Um, I'm Lance McClain," I said once I reached his office.

"Ah, Mister McClain? You have a phone call." The secretary motioned toward the phone on the counter. Telephone call? At school?

"Hello, Lance McClain on the line."

Who is it?

"Lance?"

......This... Voice... I couldn't help but be startled.

"Lance?" the voice repeated.

"Yes! It's me!"

"You don't need to shout. I can hear you clearly." It's Pidge...

"Why did you call the school?"

"Wouldn't you think it's because I don't know your personal number or home address??" Why does she need to talk so arrogantly? I was so happy I nearly cried. Why... Why would she call me?

"...Is something up?" I tried hard to hold back my emotions and remain calm.

"Compensation."

"...Huh?"

"I'm talking about your payment as my assistant. It's okay if you don't want it."

...Ah, is that it...As I sighed, my eyes seem to cloud over...So it's business-related.

"I never thought I'd get paid, you first said that I had to pay my debt. But if you'll give it to me, I'll gladly take it."

"Then, I'll transfer it to your bank account.”

"Sure, just do whatever."

After a moment of silence, she continued "And, Lance? Does your school prohibit its students from working?"

"Nope."

"...Oh, in that case…Do you want to work here?"

...Huh? ...Work...? Work in Pidge’s office?! I couldn't help but grasp the phone with all my strength."...I'll do it!"

"Then, why don't you come over and look over things. The address is..."I eagerly scribbled down the address.

...A dream. This is a dream.

"Can you find time to come?"

“I’ll try to come tomorrow after school, is it ok?” Ah, I'm so happy!!

"Ah— One more thing."

"Eh?"

"—Thank you for helping earlier. You were a big help. Thank you very much."

Why was this girl making me feel so happy? My head was spinning. That was the first time I heard her speak not in a cold tone, but in a nice, thankful voice. I was so touched I was rendered speechless.

"Then, I'll see you tomorrow.”

I finished the call with the biggest smile on my face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~End of Part One~  
> Ahh, I'm so happy we finished the first case!! What a journey!!  
> Thank you all for taking the time to read my story, even if it's not the best! I promise to improve for the next parts as much as possible. Also thanks for the amazing comments!!<3  
> The next case will be ' The Haunted Mansion', just like in the anime. I decided to keep this case because I think it helps a lot by showing the characters' powers and interactions.  
> As always, suggestions, ideas and criticism are welcomed!


	8. Chapter 8

Working at Pidge’s office was interesting, to say the least. I’ve been here for almost 2 months and I could say I’ve enjoyed my time. Every two days after school I come for four hours and do different kind of paperwork.

I really had fun coming to the workplace. The work I had to do was not very hard and after I finished it, I was allowed to do my homework until it was time to go home. Shiro was very great to talk to. He took the job of teaching me some more things about the paranormal and every time I find myself more captivated. He also helped me to prepare for my final exams and I was able to pass them without a problem! Pidge, however, treats me like a servant. When I get to the office the first thing I do is make her a cup of black tea. And oh boy how much she drinks of it! All I hear from her is “Lance, tea!” or “Tea now!”- with no thanks of course.

I already made a routine, and I can’t say I hate it. Spending time in her presence isn’t really that bad - minus the insults.

When I have to bring her tea I always glance around her personal office. It is full of bookshelves and strange technology she sometimes works at. Her desk is a mess, but she would never let me tidy it. I always glace at her papers-call it pure curiosity- and I always see different maps of the country. She would sometimes just take out a random map, draw lines on it, contemplate it and then put it aside. Is she looking for a case? I may never know… The bookshelves in the office are full of geographical books or paranormal publications. Pidge would usually sit on the sofas in the main room and read some non-fiction stuff and I always wonder how she doesn’t get bored by them…

In the meantime, summer came and so school ended, so I was happy to relax in the days I didn't have work. I went out with Ina and Nadia and listened as the gushed about random things. 

Today was a usual Monday and when I arrived at the office, I was greeted by Shiro's warm smile and by Pidge’s usual phrase:

“Lance, tea!”

Yeah hello to you too, you self-centred narcissist drinking brat!

I went to the kitchenette and prepared a cup of black tea for the gremlin and espresso for Shiro. I learnt that Shiro never spoke of his preferences, but he was always thankful for what I made him.

My papers were waiting for me on my table. Today I had to sort to some requests. Our office always got requests, but many were simple investigation work. Many people didn’t understand what we really did, so Pidge didn’t even bother to answer them. In all the two months I've been here, Pidge never accepted a case. Today’s requests weren’t really anything special: investigate a cheating wife, a ‘possessed child’, cure an aching back and analyze a horoscope. Nothing that will catch the boss’ attention.

When it was almost time to leave, the bell from the front door rang. A client!

I rushed to the door to greet them- a woman in her mid-thirties with short brown hair and big hazel eyes, dressed nicely. She politely greeted me, and I invited her to the sofa and then went to make her a cup of coffee. When I arrived back in the main lobby, Pidge was already preparing her notebook to write down the case details.

She introduced herself as Rebecca Woods and started explaining her request. “Strange things have been happening in my house…”

“What kind?” Pidge asked bored.

Rebecca quietly responded, "There are strange sounds. Sounds of someone knocking on the wall and climbing onto the bed will come from empty rooms. The door opens and closes by itself..."

A glimmer of light flashed in Pidge’s eyes. "The door opens and closes with no apparent reason?" she restated.

Rebecca nodded uneasily. "Objects in the room won't be in their usual place. The room often shakes. At first, I thought it was an earthquake, but it wasn't..."

Pidge's eyes gleamed. That means she's interested.

"Can you be more specific on objects not being in their usual place?" she inquired.

"Um... The flower vase moved, things I put in the drawer aren't there anymore, and they all end up in places they shouldn't be in."

"And the earthquake?"

"It kind of feels like an earthquake. The furniture emits a rumbling sound. And then there's this swaying feeling..." Pidge signalled to Shiro with her eyes, who then pulled out a cassette recorder to tape the client's account. Afterwards, Pidge asked her more questions.

"First of all, can you tell us about the other inhabitants…?"

After the woman left, Pidge immediately started discussing the matter with Shiro. It seemed like they'll accept Rebecca's request.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter :((  
> I promise the next one will be way longer!!


	9. Chapter 9

The next day we left to solve the case.

Mrs Woods’ house was an hour away from the city. It was a big mansion with a huge garden, located near the forest’s edge. It was a two-story building, with lots of windows and rooms. The house was very old, with ivy-covered walls and a strange perfume around it.

When we arrived, I got an abnormal feeling in my chest, just as unusual as the one I got when I first met Pidge.

"What's wrong?" Pidge turned around and asked.

"It's just...I have this odd feeling…It’s probably just my stomach" I murmured

How can I talk about the house looking really dark and creepy with Mrs Woods standing right there? She smiled from the doorway "Are you surprised that it's so old? They say that this house was built before the war. It always feels a bit lonely to me."

"...Oh."

The wind blew, rustling the leaves in trees.

"—Come in, come in," she ushered us.

The house looked so amazing. This was a mansion! The white walls and brown furniture gave it a quaint look. "What a cool house..."

The woman smiled and thanked me. Then her expression suddenly changed to a serious one. "It would be better if those strange things didn't happen..."

...True. No matter how magnificent a building may look, they usually sell cheap because something bad happened there.

"My husband’s not here, so the place always makes me uneasy."

Her husband was the owner of the house, but he was overseas on a business trip. Since his departure, many strange and scary things started happening. At this moment, there were three females in the house, including Rebecca's sister-in-law and daughter.

Mrs Woods smiled slightly, "Clara is waiting for everyone so please come along."

We entered the guest room.

"Ah!"

"Eh?!"

The moment we entered, I let out a yelp. We had some familiar guests.

"...Long time no see." The young woman smiled...Why are you guys over here— in the living room we met with Coran and Allura. What an unusual coincidence…

"Do you know them? "Mrs Woods asked curiously.

Pidge answered her question, displeasure evident in her blunt tone, "We've done business together before..."

"So that's how it is... In that case, an introduction would be unnecessary."

"That's right."

The man with the big moustache on his face is a former monk – Coran Smythe. The woman near him is his niece, Allura Brooks, a Shinto priestess. So, why were these guys over here anyway—? My thoughts were interrupted when a new person entered the room - A tall woman with reddish long hair carrying a tray with cups of tea.

“This is my sister-in-law, Clara Woods” she smiled” And that is my daughter, Isabelle,” she said pointing at a little girl following Clara.

For a second, I saw Pidge flinch, but then I turned to see the little child. She was probably five years old. The girl almost looked like an angel or doll. Wearing a white dress, she was cradling an outdated doll with her tiny fingers. She looked like she came from a painting.

"So is that everyone?" Pidge asked calmly.

"Right," Rebecca answered her.

The boss nodded, "I have some questions for you later. Mrs Woods, would it be alright if you prepare a room for us? A base for us to investigate from."

"No problem. Please come this way," she raised her hand and guided us to another room.

~

Such a big house... So many chambers. I could get lost in this mansion if didn't pay attention. We were led to an empty room on the first floor near the stairs. 

Pidge examined the area and nodded. Then she turned toward Coran and Allura, "…Can you tell me why you two are here?"

Such a cold tone.

The priestess looked smug, "Long time no see. Can't you act a little bit happier?"

"I'm terribly sorry." Pidge's expression was still cold and detached.

"So little, yet so fickle," Coran sighed.

Pidge's lack of emotion and cold stare urged the two to reply. "That's because," Allura said, looking at Coran, "We had...gotten a request from Miss Clara Woods."

"It's easier to have more people around in this kind of situation." Coran nodded.

"So that's why you guys are here." I followed their conversation...It must be destiny to meet again…

"We'll just leave it at that. Please continue to help us," Coran said, smiling surreptitiously.

Pidge ignored the other two and looked at me and Shiro instead, "Let's start working."

...It started! Gunderson Psychic Research was doing tough work again.

We are ghost hunters... we get rid of ghosts. Even though psychics can also investigate, Pidge isn't a psychic. Or that's what she says, anyway. She uses state-of-the-art video cameras and equipment to help with the investigation, but moving them around is manual labour. I swear Pidge is trying to kill me!

I went back to the van and started moving all the technologies. I already set up the shelves so all I had to do was move the equipment onto that. Seeing the room become a research institute made me feel part of something amazing.

"Is that the room where the paranormal phenomena occurred?" Pidge asked Rebecca in the meantime.

She shook her head, "There isn't a specific place where it occurs..."

The boss contemplated, then said, "Then we can place two videocams on both the first and second floor. And we can set one up in the hallway. Let's observe the situation first."

After we placed the videocams in those designated places, we were sweating. This is probably the worst part of this job - besides the scary spirits of course!

"Still the same, I see," Coran sighed, glancing up at the mountain-pile of TVs and video cameras.

It really was quite a sight to see. There were twelve small TVs and some other commonplace equipment that I didn't see a use for. Shiro sat in front of the equipment, looking for abnormalities. The TV screens brightened, showing different areas of the house.

"What do you think of this place?" Coran asked Pidge.

"I can't be sure as of now," she replied coldly. She seemed... Angry. She's a really proud girl, so she dislikes it whenever someone else interrupts her work.

Allura snickered, "I don't know anything about this ghost hunt stuff, but as always, you're making a big deal out of this. This isn't even a big case."

"So is this your intuition?" asked Pidge.

After hearing her, Ayako was at a loss for words. In the old school building case, Allura's intuition was never right. But she at least tried to cooperate with the others…unlike someone else…

"That time was an exception. This time I'm not wrong. The culprit is an earth spirit."

"You said that last time, but you guessed wrong," she stated with such a disdainful tone.

Coran laughed loudly, earning a glare from his niece. "What about you, number three, you're Lance, right? Pidge's assistant."

"Yes, glad to hear you remember my name… According to what Mrs Woods said, this seems to be the work of a poltergeist."

"Oh."

Poltergeist... That's what the word means in a literal sense: a disturbing spirit. Objects relocating themselves and eerie noises coming from nowhere. There was an investigator named E. Tisane that categorized poltergeist activities. They're called "Tisane’s Nine Criteria: explosions, knocking sounds, doors opening and closing, vibrations, eerie sounds, invasions, moving objects will be warm to the touch, and objects will come out of nowhere.

I learnt all these things thanks to Shiro and his kindness.

"According to what Mrs Woods said, there're knocking sounds, doors opening and closing, objects relocating themselves, and eerie sounds. That's five conditions. As long as more than half the criteria are met, it can be considered a poltergeist. I think the possibility of this happening is pretty high."

Hmm— I've become pretty smart. This is what I've learned from Pidge’s "you're stupid" assaults.

Coran laughed aloud, clapping, "Heh, pretty amazing. If it's a poltergeist, then who's the culprit?"

Hee hee. Nice, I was waiting for that. "It's Rebecca or Clara."

"Huh?"

"Poltergeist activities are usually caused by the house's inhabitants, most of which are women. After knowing that, isn't it obvious?"

"So that's how it is," Allura gasped with admiration. " Perhaps they don't get along well and they are fighting constantly."

I sure am awesome. Thinking of that, I looked at Pidge, who returned my look with a piercing gaze.

Huh?

"At first I wanted to praise you for remembering everything you learned so far, but," Pidge continued coldly, "poltergeist culprits are usually between ten and fifteen years old, meaning they are undergoing puberty. Mrs Woods is already thirty. Saying she's undergoing puberty right now is a rather outrageous idea."

...Oh.

"Although it's possible for a spiritually sensitive woman to be responsible… No matter what, let's just observe the situation for now. We'll make a conclusion later."

...Hmph. So I was right after all.

Coran looked at Shiro. "Is that man over there also Pidge's assistant?"

Shiro nodded slightly and introduced himself. He was injured in the last case so he had no choice but to rest for a while - That's why the group doesn't really know much about him.

"What do you think of this case?" asked Coran.

Shiro briefly answered, smiling "I don’t like to make presumptions on the first day, but we have to take into consideration every possibility."

Both Coran and Allura raised their eyebrows. "...Are you really Pidge’s assistant? You have such different personalities!"

Pidge crossed her arms, ignoring them.

Shiro is just that kind of person. Unlike his boss, he is very cheerful and kind. He always talks with me when I get bored.

Shiro continued to look at the TV screen as if nothing happened.

~

When we were almost done with straightening everything out, Rebecca brought us to one of the luxurious guest rooms.

If this were a deserted haunted house, Pidge would never enter unless she knew it was safe first. But since people live here already— and one of them is a five-year-old girl, it really shouldn't be dangerous. And so, we're staying here for the night.

"Wow, it's so...beautiful!"

Silk curtains, a dressing room, a dressing table, a nice bed, and even a small cabinet. ...Amazing, this was such luxury. But will I get the chance to sleep here? No matter how I think about it, paranormal phenomena usually occur at night. That will definitely happen.

"Are you satisfied with this room?" Rebecca asked, smiling.

"Yes! Thank you very much, Mrs Woods" I replied.

"Well, you don't have to be so polite, okay?"

"Yes, but..."

"Please."

"...Okay."

Hearing my reply, Rebecca seemed happy. 

"The scenery is amazing," I said in amazement, looking out the window. Near the garden, there was a small pond, surrounded by beautiful magnolia trees. This was a really beautiful estate.

Like me, Rebecca also looked at the scenery from the window. "...I've often thought that way too... But lately it seems scary..." she admitted. " Just thinking about something awful happening ... Aren't there stories like this? The young child that drowned cries out for his family..."

I quickly answered, "Don't worry about it. That didn't happen here." I couldn't explain the entire situation to the woman though...

"...Thank you. My husband is usually not at home so it gets scary."

I chuckled, "Everything will soon be alright. Our director is here, and so is the priestess and monk. Everything will be fine!”

"Really?" she seemed a bit happier now. "If it's okay with you, would you join me for tea? It's time for afternoon tea. Is it okay if Isabelle comes too?"

"That would be awesome!"

~

Carrying the tea set, Rebecca and I went into Isabelle's room.

"Dear." The mother opened the door.

Little Isabelle was lying on the floor, reading a picture book. Her eyes swept toward us. She seemed lost in thought, which made her look as cute as a rabbit. I adored children! When I needed pocket money I always babysit my neighbour's two kids and I always had fun - I like to believe that I'm great with children.

"Hello," I smiled, waving my hand.

The girl let out a happy smile, then pushed her picture book to the side. She grabbed her doll and walked toward us. The expressions on foreign dolls were always creepy, but this doll was kind of cute. Isabelle turned toward me, then lifted the doll's left arm, "Hello."

I bent down and shook the doll's hand. "Hi, what's your name?"

"Minnie," the girl said, moving the doll's little hand.

"Minnie, nice to meet you. I'm Lance."

"Nice to meet you, Lance."

"Dear, it's snack time." Hearing her mother, the little girl quickly nodded, then just as quickly shook her head. What's wrong? They're snacks. Cute, pink cakes~ She became quiet, lowering her head.

...Weird. Why are you suddenly acting this way...

~

After dinner, Pidge gathered all the inhabitants: Rebecca, Clara and Isabelle. When Pidge got everyone to sit down at the table in the dining room, she turned off the lights. The room became pitch dark.

"I'll have to borrow your time for a while," she stated. After saying that, she turned on a light just like the one that she used at my school. "Please look at the light." The light flashed on and off in the dark. Pidge softly said, "Please breathe along to the light. Slowly now... Relax your shoulders..."

She was trying to give everyone a hint. It's similar to hypnotism. It's an autosuggestion. I looked at everyone's face and realized they were all relaxed.

Usually, poltergeist activities happen for various reasons. But most of the time people believe it's caused by a ghost or a demon. A lot of culprits behind poltergeist activity are in fact, humans. Spiritually sensitive people will sometimes use their psychic powers unconsciously. Of course, it's not just a simple disturbance. No matter what, it almost always seems supernatural. 

"Please count the number of times you breathe," Pidge said repeatedly. They repeated that for five minutes. When everyone became relaxed, the boss stated our goal. "Tonight, the flower vase in the dining room will move... The glass flower vase. Tonight it will reappear on the other table in this room."

Her soft fluctuating voice was stunning... like music...If I were to describe the colour of her voice, it would be clear, transparent.

"—Okay, it's finished." She suddenly turned the lights back on. We blinked our eyes in hopes of adjusting to the light again.

"Now you are free to do what you want and please give me the key to this room."

Clara handed the key to Pidge and once everyone left the room, I placed the vase in the middle of the table, where Pidge had drawn a circle. Meanwhile, Shiro set a video camera up to record the table. The sensitive camera can record videos in the dark. Even if there's only a little light, the camera will record it as if it's broad daylight. He plugged the video camera cable into the outlet. After everything was put into place, we left the room too.

Pidge locked the door, sealing it with a piece of paper. That way no one would be able to go in. If someone forced themselves into the room, the paper would tear. The living room had become an isolated room. The other radar was on the other side of the wall, observing the flower vase. If the vase moved even slightly, then the radar would record that movement and send it to our base.

After the autosuggestion, we returned to our workroom—Pidge calls it our base, but to me, it's more of a research institute— to put it simply. That said, Coran and Allura were chatting again.

"Leisure time, I see," Pidge remarked her tone heavy with sarcasm.

Coran replied, "I'll decide what to do after we see the results of that experiment. When I'm sure the poltergeist activities aren't caused by a human, I'll take action."

Eh... Interesting. This means that he’s acknowledging Pidge’s powers. Last time, he was all in her face, saying how what she was doing was meaningless…

Pidge seemed aware of that too. "How honourable of you," came a mocking voice. Her eyes weren’t laughing at all. Instead, they look cold and sinister. Can't she smile normally? 

~

Something strange happened that night.

At 9 o'clock, Clara ran into the base. "Please help!" she exclaimed.

"What's wrong?"

Her face was pale and frantic. She recklessly grabbed a calm Pidge, "Please, come quickly!" We— excluding Shiro, which makes four of us— looked at each other, then followed her out of the base.

We arrived at Isabelle’s room. Her room was on the second floor, just like the room I had.

"Look!" Clara rushed into the room.

Our eyes widened as we observed the room. That table that used to be right beside the wall was leaned over. Not only that, the bed, bookshelf and wardrobe were all at a crooked angle, pushed to the edge of the room. Dazed and sleepy, the little girl stood in the corner in her pyjamas.

"...What happened..." Coran whispered.

Clara replied firmly, "...When I came to get her in bed, the room was just like this…”

I grasped the situation and looked at the little girl, "Isabelle?"

She blinked her eyes several times, then raised her head toward me, "Why is the furniture on upside down?" She was scared stiff.

I also noticed the carpet was inverted, pushed to the side...I couldn't help but feel a chill run down my back. Who could've moved all that? It was all so heavy. There was furniture on top of the carpet. Even with all my strength, I wouldn't have been able to move it more than some centimetres.

Who did this? And how did they do it?

Coran opened his mouth "With all that furniture on the carpet, even I wouldn't be able to move it…"

Pidge calmly asked Clara, "...First of all, can we examine this room?"

"Yes, do what you want," she said, nodding. "We'll leave then." The woman pulled Isabelle’s hand. The girl lifted her head and looked at us, "I didn't do it. " She was on the verge of tears.

"I know it's not your fault," I said hastily, in hopes of consoling her.

Allura went and softly patted her head, "We all know it's not your fault. Don't cry, okay?"

"Okay...” she finally broke into a smile.

After they left, we started to discuss the case.

"What's your opinion on this, Pidge?"

Opinion? What kind of opinion can you get from that?

"If someone is capable of accomplishing this, I'd like to see that person..."

Coran went up and pushed the bed. It didn't move, and the carpet made even less progress. Pidge looked around the bed, then said softly, "There aren't any marks on the bed. A human alone didn't do this."

And then a despairing cry came from downstairs.

We rushed down the stairs.

"What happened?"

We ran to the living room.

Clara was standing, her face chalk-white. Isabelle was on the side, her eyes in a daze. Rebecca rushed there, noticed the scene, and was shocked.

We ran to a halt. The furniture was all flipped upside down. The table, chairs, and even the bookshelf leaning against the wall were all flipped upside-down. The painting on the wall was also flipped upside-down.

No one said a word.

It might seem easy to flip the table over, but this one was composed of thick, tough wood. If Shiro or Coran both try to flip it over together, then it might work.

I suddenly realized something under my feet. The carpet, which was under all the furniture, was also flipped upside-down.

We set up video cameras in Isabelle’s room, our base, and the living room. Today, it seemed like the girl was sleeping with her mother.

Pidge looked at the equipment in those two rooms, then she started contemplating.

"Well, if you want to keep watching the TV screen then just keep doing that. I'm going to sleep." Allura said. “We’ll see what happened tomorrow.” The girl left to her room.

After Allura left, Coran asked, "What's up? You seem to be concentrating hard on something."

Pidge ignored him. Hey, you should at least answer.

But the older man didn't seem to care. "Did you find any clues?"

Finally, she answered, "Don't you think they reacted too early?"

"Huh?"

A light flickered in Pidge's brown eyes. Such a pretty colour...

She proceeded to explain, "Spirits normally hate outsiders. When outsiders come into their house, they usually hide for a certain amount of time."

"True."

I asked Coran, "So that's the case with this house?" If I asked Pidge instead, she'd chide my ignorance.

"Yes... Doesn't this usually happen on TV? When people try to record a haunted house, nothing ever happens. Whether it's a spirit or a poltergeist, once an outsider comes, they usually lay low for a while... It should be this way."

Pidge's eyes were fixed on the TV, "But so many incidents have occurred since we came here. And they're all more serious than the ones Mrs Woods mentioned."

"...Yeah. she only mentioned objects swaying in her house..." Coran’s eyes became serious and intense, a rare moment to see, as he crossed his arms, "...Usually, the reactions weaken. A loud sound would instead become a soft sound created by friction. But if the reactions become stronger instead..." He stopped for a moment. "Repulsion."

Pidge looked at Coran. "So, you think that way too?"

"Yes. This house seemed unhappy the moment we came here. Plus, it showed us a number of incidents in our short time here..."

"This poltergeist isn't an ordinary one." She nodded, her voice barely a whisper, "...This could be a troublesome one."

I stood up uneasily...A troublesome one...

When nothing else moved in the night, we finally went to sleep around daybreak.

~

The flower vase on the table was still in the same place. It didn't move from the circle.

Once we got back to base, I asked the boss, "Since the flower vase didn't move...Does that mean the people who live here didn't cause the poltergeist activity?"

"Yes."

"Hey, can the culprit be Rebecca’s husband who's overseas right now?" I questioned curiously.

"That would be impossible because he's not here. I've never heard of a case where a middle-aged man is the culprit. Even if it is him, the poltergeist activity would've left when he left. If that were the case, the poltergeist activity would occur where-ever he is staying at."

"Then... Is it because of a ghost?"

"I can't be sure about that yet."

...Please, just tell me if it is.

Pidge turned around to me, "That can't be determined right now. Lance, check the temperatures of each room." She then turned around to face Shiro, "Please check the foundations of this building."

Shiro stood up ”Okay.”

In the afternoon, while I was measuring the temperatures of each room, Allura started her exorcism.

The location seemed to be Isabelle’s room. When I passed by our base, I saw the priestess on a video camera, standing in front of an altar. A Shinto prayer started to come out of the microphone.

Coran sat in front of the equipment, obviously at ease. Shiro went out to investigate, while Pidge went around the house to look around.

"Coran, aren't you going to do something?" I asked him... He was the only one acting carefree.

"Are you saying you know Pidge's conclusion?" he replied.

I didn’t answer.

After Allura finished her prayer, she came to the base. What's going to happen now?

"How's the situation?" I asked Pidge when she came back, as I handed her a piece of paper with the recorded temperatures of each room.

"The temperature in Isabelle's room is somewhat low," she responded.

...When a spirit shows up in a certain place, the temperature decreases.

She placed down my report, then looked at a layout of the house. "This house isn't slanted, and the foundations are solid. Although water flows under this house, it does so smoothly. In addition, the water level hasn't decreased."

In other words...

"It's a ghost?" I asked her.

"That's a high possibility."

...Oh. She... Said that in such a calm way.

I'm really scared of ghosts…A lot of poltergeist activities are caused by humans so I'm not completely scared by them. But I've never seen a spirit before. When I told ghost stories with my friends, I wasn't scared either.

I'm getting frightened now... —And then, Clara’s shrill cry rang through the air.

On our way to the kitchen, we bumped into Rebecca. When we got there, we were shocked to see the pipe was on fire! Rebecca screamed. Clara was frozen stiff with fear.

I quickly looked around. The fire extinguisher. Where's the fire extinguisher?!

The huge flames almost engulfed the opposite wall. Coran pulled Clara out of the way while I reached for the fire extinguisher by the refrigerator. Mist sprayed into the surroundings. Rebecca ran and grabbed another fire extinguisher and helped. Using the two fire extinguishers, we finally put out the fire.

Clara slumped onto the floor.

"Thank... You."

She continued to tremble. Allura tried to comfort her. "Madam, are you alright?"

"Ah... This kind of thing... has never happened..."

Someone's at the window... Even though the room was lit by a small light, I was positive there was a child there. That child looked at us from the window. Then it suddenly disappeared.

"Pidge!"

"What?"

"Did you see that just now?"

She looked at the direction my finger was pointing at, "What was there?"

"I saw someone there..."

Pidge ran to the window and looked outside, "No one's here."

"Someone's there. I'm sure of it. And it was looking inside too... It was a child."

Everyone became nervous.

"Was it Isabelle?"

"I don't know. I couldn't see the face."

"But she is already asleep," Rebecca said uneasily.

Pidge turned her intense gaze down onto the floor, thinking carefully. "Let's look at the situation from a different perspective...."

Isabelle was sleeping in Rebecca’s room again. The lights were off in the room, however, in the dimness, we could see the little girl wasn't asleep... In the dark room, she was sitting up in the bed, playing with her doll. She placed a small quilt on Minnie.

A girl playing with her doll in the dark. It sounded so creepy.

Isabelle raised her head. Her mother turned on the lights, then sat by her, "Darling, were you in the kitchen just now?"

Blinded by the lights, the child blinked her eyes before shaking her head in surprise. She looked uncomfortable under her mother’s interrogating gaze. "No, I wasn't."

She shook her head furiously. Rebecca let out a soft sigh. A loud sound came from the ceiling. It was almost as if something was hitting the ceiling. We looked up. The sound didn't stop.

"I didn't do it!" she cried out, tears brimming in her eyes.

The thumping sounds continued as if they were responding to the child. The chandelier swayed, making a creaking sound. The thumping sounds grew louder and louder. The bed and furniture rocked too.

"Mrs Woods, it's dangerous here..." Pidge warned.

Right after she said that the bed flipped over and the bookshelf started to fall.

"...!"

The bookshelf and toys started to tumble onto the frightened woman.

I couldn't help but scream. Isabelle screamed too.

As if on cue, the lights went off.

~

Rebecca was hurt in many places, but luckily her injuries were not serious. She went to sleep with her daughter in another room.

We returned to base. There was a TV screen showing Isabelle’s room. That's why no one was in her room.

The string of numbers on the screen changed continuously. That indicated the time. The other thermal cameras were placed in the living room, the kitchen, and the hallways on the first and second floor.

Nothing changed on the TV.

"This thing it's beyond my abilities. I'm really sorry." Allura said, looking sad. I tried comforting her. ”Don’t worry Allura, everything will be alright!”

"...But, don't you think it's dangerous?" her voice was uneasy. "The pipe broke...and suddenly burst into fire. Doesn't this poltergeist seem strong?"

As if sensing I was uneasy, Pidge coldly suggested, "If you're scared, you can go home."

...I'm not scared.

Coran said in a carefree tone, "The gas valve is already closed. Fire won't explode from it again."...This guy isn't nervous at all.

"Pidge, doesn't it seem strange? "he asked.

"Isabelle's situation?"

"Yeah, that poltergeist back there seemed to react to the kid's actions. Lance also said he saw a kid back in the kitchen..."

"Are you saying that Isabelle is the reason for the poltergeist activity?" she touched her jaw.

"The autosuggestion showed that the culprit isn't someone who lives here. How much confidence do you place in that test?" Coran continued.

"A hundred percent," Pidge replied bluntly, "the culprit doesn't live here."

"Your autosuggestion might've failed."

"That's impossible."

...You're still full of confidence, Pidge.

"Don't say it so resolutely..." Coran said, not willing to give up. A low voice intercepted, "Pidge is an expert at autosuggestion so that would be indeed impossible."

...That voice just now...was it Shiro’s? He suddenly became serious.

"Oh, you trust her a lot," Allura snatched this opportunity for sarcasm, but Shiro just continued to look at the TV screen. "I'm only stating a fact. I’ve known her long enough to say that her methods don’t fail" Such an emotionless voice. He made a 180 degrees change.

Allura was about to say something else, but then Shiro cut her off, "Pidge, the temperature is decreasing."

She looked at the TV. "...What's the time?"

"Two fifteen a.m."

At this time, a red light shone on the edge of Isabelle's room.

"What's that?" I asked, pointing at the screen.

"The sound reception—Shiro, the speaker." As soon as Shiro set up the microphone, eerie sounds came out.

A booming sound came down, followed by a quiet knocking sound. A cracking sound sounded through the air. Noisy sounds filled the air. It almost sounded like a mob of people was running around up there.

"Such strong sounds..."

There was nothing on the screen. No one was in the room. Nothing moved in the room either. It all seemed scary.

"This is...really serious..." Pidge whispered.

"What?" I asked.

"The temperature suddenly dropped..." she murmured. The screen was filled with a deep, blue colour. "The response is strong. The temperature's still dropping... It's below freezing temperature..."

She looked uptight.

The strange sounds continued.

"Isabelle didn't do this. No human could've done this..."

...Then, that must mean…

"It's a ghost?"

"Correct, and a strong one too..." she said almost smirking. I was almost scared to death and she was smiling? 

Coran seemed excited as he stood confidently: "Whatever you say. If there is a ghost, it'll be my turn now. I'll perform a magnificent exorcism!"

The eerie sounds persisted for a while before quieting down.

We finally got some rest. 


	10. Chapter 10

When I woke up on the second day, Pidge had already left - said she had to do some research. And so, I let Shiro take care of base while I went to Rebecca’s room.

Isabelle was playing with some dolls by herself.

"Isabelle, can I play with you?" I asked.

The child shook her head silently. Rebecca was standing on the side, her arms crossed.

"Isabelle is really obedient." Hearing my words, Rebecca’s face had a sad glow. "She wasn't like this before..."

"Really?"

"Yes. She was more extroverted ... She loved to annoy people. But ever since we moved here, she's been awfully quiet and doesn't smile much anymore."

We chatted until 3:00 pm when Clara came in to give us snacks.

After that, I went back to my room and took a nap. Coran was going to do a prayer again so I wasn't missing out. And so, I snatched this opportunity to get some rest. I probably won't be able to sleep well tonight anyway.

The sun rays streaked in, giving the room a rosy tint.

Half-asleep, my body felt light. I wasn't really drifting in the air; I was slowly falling down into empty space... It's a hard sensation to describe...This must have been a dream...

I opened my eyes in surprise. The room was getting darker. Someone else was here.

...Who is it?

I slowly turned my head. A gloomy shadow was just standing there. A pale face. Pidge? My vision was blurry, but I could make out brownish hair and dark clothes.

Why would she be in my room? When I thought of it that way, I turned to look at her.

Pidge smiled slightly, her eyes warm.

...What's wrong? Why are you standing there? I was about to ask her. Suddenly her face became solemn. She seemed anxious.

...What? What did you say?

I gazed into her eyes and tried to read her lips, but everything was too blurry. Her voice came like a whisper.

...Isabelle...?

What about Isabelle?

...Isabelle's in danger?

Suddenly I woke up.

I got up in bed and quickly looked around. The room was kind of dark, but she wasn't here. Of course. She wouldn't be here. It was just a dream!

Oh?... Was I dreaming about her again? —I must be too tired. Yes, that's it. I'm doing too much work for someone my age. And then there's our strange relationship…

...Isabelle...I started thinking about her again. A frail, little child. Minnie's her only friend, and she plays by herself.

What's wrong with this house? What's wrong with the kid?

I lay flat on the bed.

Ah—I'm so tired.

...Why Pidge. Sometimes I really couldn't believe myself. Did I have a crush on her? That’s why I was feeling that way…The Pidge in my dreams was kind and smiled warmly. Is that what I want?

Oh— Eh...

"Ha!" I tried to get my spirits back and sat up. Nothing will happen if I just think about it. Right now, Isabelle's problem is the priority. I climbed out of bed and got ready to work again.

~

After dark, Pidge came back. The base became a meeting place again. As she walked in, Allura waved at her, "Did you make any progress with your research?"

"Yes... Have there been any changes here?" Pidge replied absently, her head turned toward Shiro’s direction.

"As of now, nothing changed." He said, "Coran performed an exorcism today."

"I think the exorcism was successful." Coran chirped in.

"Congratulations."

I wrinkled my face, "...You, how come you're not cute at all?"

"My cute side merged with my capable side. —Shiro, give me a layout of Isabelle's room." Pidge answered, not paying attention to me.

Nobody can make her cute.

Pidge stood up, her face a void of emotion. "Lance, come here. We will examine the camera's angle."

"Okay."

...Does she only think about work?

Pidge and I went to Isabelle's room to check on the videocam. She thought about it for a moment, then said, "I want to see the doll first. Where is it?"

~

"Oh? So this is Minnie?" Pidge took the doll, then squinted at it with her brown eyes. She wasn’t wearing her glasses today. "When did you buy it?"

"Before we moved into this house. My husband went to Europe... This is a gift... He said it's from Paris."

"Did Isabelle's personality change before or after that?"

Rebecca thought for a moment, "Afterwards...I think."

"I see..."

I looked at Pidge, "Is something wrong?"

"...I'm not sure."

"Give it back!" Suddenly Isabelle's voice shot out into the air. I was so scared I jumped. Isabelle pulled at Pidge's black clothes. "Give Minnie back! Don't touch her!"

"Isabelle, can you speak with Minnie?" she asked but didn't get a reply. Isabelle persistently stretched out her hand and finally grabbed the doll back from the boss.

"I won't let anyone touch her!" she clutched onto Minnie, then turned around and ran.

Pidge walked out, her face deep in concentration.

~

I didn't sleep that night either because I stared at the TV in the base.

"What's that?" I asked pointing to some numbers on the screen.

"Don't point at it. Your finger is too unsteady."

...Oh, come on.

"That indicates the quantity of ozone in the air. On the side is the quantity of static electricity. And on the side of that are the components of the atmosphere... Do you have any other questions?"

I was about to complain, but then Pidge stood up. "It's starting."

"What is?"

The temperature of Isabelle's room decreased dramatically. I looked at the equipment. Three of the thermography machines whirred. Now it was in temperature mode. The video camera slowly changed its angle until it faced the bed. In the centre was Minnie, situated on top of a pillow. Minnie's emotionless face was in the videocam. Glass eyes. Emptiness. She didn't look so cute anymore.

"Dolls sure make me feel uncomfortable," I said.

Behind me, Coran replied, "Well, of course." He crossed his arms. "Dolls used to be vessels for human souls. Hitogata resembles humans. In the past, they were used to curse people."

"Huh—?"

Allura nodded, "It can serve as a channel for curses. Sealing spirits into voodoo dolls. Then you stick needles into the doll. If the voodoo doll is damaged, so is the person it represents. This is a method to hurt people."

...Pidge abruptly stood up. All eyes turned toward her. She stared intently at the screen. Allura, Coran, and Shiro all leaned forward.

...Minnie's head was facing downwards...

When did it happen? I was just watching the screen a moment ago!

Minnie's golden hair spread across the pillow. Under our intense gaze, the doll moved. Sliding and moving, she moved like a stiff puppet. Her head fell off.

...Scary...!

The dismembered head rolled on the bed. Then there was the sound of it hitting something. It was as if the doll was alive. Afterwards, the temperature in Isabelle's room rose until it was back to the normal range. We rushed to her room. Everything was the same as we left it. The head didn't fall off. Minnie didn't seem any different; she was sitting in her old position. In addition, video cameras were working properly. But when we re-wound the tape, it was all blank. There was no sound either. Everything was just blank. All the data recorded was gone. That is to say, we didn't have any evidence of what we saw... It was almost like a nightmare.

We were stuck in quicksand, not sure what we could do, even though Pidge said this happened often. But now we know one thing for sure-Coran’s exorcism was also unsuccessful.

~

In the morning of the second day (though it was almost noon), I rushed to base. "Where's Pidge?"

The only people in the room were Shiro and Coran.

"She said she had to do more research."

"Eh—" What is she looking up anyway? She always leaves to do God knows what. I suddenly remembered yesterday's dream.

"Isabelle's in danger," Pidge told me that in my dream.

"Hey, where are you going?" Coran called out as I was leaving the base.

"Rebecca’s room."

I can't let Isabelle be with Minnie by herself. I just knew that would be a bad idea. Playing with that doll would be dangerous. I hurried to the room. What was Isabelle doing? Was she playing like usual? Right when I was about to knock, I heard a voice talking, "This house is filled with witches" —It was the voice of a little girl.

...Witches? Who is it? That's not Isabelle's voice. I pressed my ear against the door.

"I'm scared..." Isabelle whimpered.

"Don't be. I will chase them away."

" Will Lance too?"

A dark snicker—"Of course..."

"I like being with him. He’s nice to me"

"No, no. I told you already. Everyone has to go!”—Another snicker— "But don't worry. I'll help you deal with them... So in return, you must listen to me."

"Isabelle!" I shouted as I opened the door. The girl was the only person in the room. In front of her was the creepy doll, Minnie. No one else was here. Isabelle lifted her head and looked at me, her eyes clouded in confusion.

"Isabelle, who were you talking to?"

"...Minnie," she replied. My furious tone must've scared her. I put on a smile and sat down by her, my voice soft and light as I spoke. "Minnie?"

"Yeah, and some other kids too."

Some other kids...

"So there are other kids besides Minnie. Where are they?"

Isabelle pointed her finger, "Over there." I looked at the direction she was pointing at. No one was there. I was horrified, but I put on a big smile anyway. "I see. I guess they don't like me much."

Isabelle lowered her head.

"Where did you guys meet? Are they your classmates?"

Isabelle shook her head. What's wrong? Kids that I can't see...My voice was trembling slightly, "Your friends... When did they start coming here to play with you?"

"...I don't remember."

"Was it after you moved in?"

"Yes."

"Are you good friends with them?"

Isabelle seemed sullen as she nodded her head, "Minnie brought them here..."

Minnie... Brought them?

~

Pidge came back later than yesterday.

"You must be tired," Allura smiled as she welcomed Pidge back. "Did you find anything? “

—At lunch, we had an argument with Clara. And no wonder... The prayers and exorcisms from yesterday didn't work.

Pidge ignored Allura. "Shiro, did anything new happen?"

"No. It's the same as yesterday."

"Really... What about Isabelle?" Pidge asked me.

"She's in Rebecca's room— is something wrong?"

"No. That's good." The boss was deep in thought. "Did Isabelle have any problems?"

"Not really."

...If nothing was wrong, would you really ask that? What's going on? How is Isabelle related to what Pidge was looking up?

"Pidge, Isabelle's condition seems weird," I said. The moment I said that she turned swiftly toward me. I told her all the strange things that happened. The weird sounds. And the children that I could not see. Coran and Allura listened in wonder.

"I keep thinking that this case and that little girl are intertwined... The doll, too," Allura muttered.

Hearing her, Pidge looked down at the carpet. "There are no rumours about ghosts in this house."

"...Oh, come on..." Coran sighed as he leaned against his chair.

"The important thing is, Minnie might be possessed," Allura stated.

"...Kids that only Isabelle can see. Kids that Minnie brought over. Don't you think it's strange?" Coran cocked his head. "Ghost children... Maybe they possess the doll... Dolls are humans without souls. In other words, a soulless body. They're really easy to possess. That's why spirits were sealed in dolls as a way of cursing."

...please don't say such things...

"...Really. I know !!" Coran suddenly started clapping his hands. "A jibakurei is bound to Minnie!"

After saying that, he turned to Pidge, "Don't you think this is it?"

"Yes, most likely."

Coran nodded proudly, "Okay, that's good. Then all I have to do is exorcise the spirit that's bound to this doll."

"Hold on a moment," Allura called out to Coran, "we can't know for sure if the exorcism will work. Why don't we call Keith?"

Silence filled the room. Keith...Keith Kogane? The medium that's about my age. In our last case, Pidge was very polite to him.

"If Keith were here, we could find out for sure if that doll is possessed," the priestess stated.

...This could be a good method, but Pidge didn't seem to like it. "That would be unnecessary. Mister Smythe, how about you perform the exorcism."

Allura seemed unsatisfied. "But isn't this way more dangerous? If the doll is possessed, then during an exorcism, won't the spirit possess Isabelle instead?"

"It's possible...Miss Brooks, can you protect Isabelle? This way, if anything bad happens it can be resolved quickly."

"...Oh?" A look of surprise flashed across Allura’s. "I never thought you could be so considerate. I didn't expect you to let me do this."

"I thought you might like a chance to redeem yourself," Pidge replied coldly before turning toward Coran. "Mister Smythe, can you do the exorcism?"

"Just leave it to me."

It was almost 12 o'clock. After we took the doll from the sleeping girl, Coran started the exorcism.

Allura was sitting beside Isabelle. On one side was a stick figure; in the front were two knives. Allura's left hand was carrying a bead necklace, while she carried a bell with her other hand. There was a spell paper on Isabelle's chest.

"I'm ready."

I went to Isabelle's room to tell Coran what his niece just said. "She's ready." I was running around, delivering messages. Pidge was in base, looking at the equipment should something happen. The monk nodded, signalling that he was ready. I ran back to base. Once I reached base, I heard Coran’s voice from the microphone, "Na u ma ku san man da ba za ra dan." He started the Buddhism chant that I did not understand again. It's supposed to be a mantra.

"Sen da ma ka ro sha da so ku ta ya un ta ra ta kan man."

Minnie didn't look any different. After the temperature dropped five degrees, it became stable. It didn't drop dramatically. There weren't any eerie sounds from the microphone either.

"There should be a response..."

Pidge cocked her head, deep in thought. Suddenly there was a moaning sound. The sound came from Isabelle's room. When we got there, it looked like a small hurricane just went through the room. Everything was messy; the furniture was all pushed and slanted onto the walls.

Allura held the chalk-faced Isabelle. Rebecca shrank onto the bed.

"Mrs Woods, are you alright?" I went to console her.

Her pale face was wrought with fear as tears filled her eyes.

"What's wrong? Does something hurt?"

"...My leg..."

Coran ran up to us to look at her foot. "...Her ankle... Is dislocated...Call the ambulance!"

Pidge rushed out the door.

Rebecca clutched my hand. I could feel her shaking. "The person... Who pulled my foot... Was very strong."

"...Who...?"

"I don't know..."

Coran pointed at her foot. There was a clear handprint near her ankle.

...A child's handprint.

~

"Exactly what happened here?!" Clara called the taxi to take Rebecca to the hospital.

Allura leaned closer to Coran as she explained, "It felt like a small earthquake, but then all this happened!"

"Aren't you here so that you can prevent this from happening?!"

"I can't help it either! It came so fast that I couldn't do anything!"

Pidge put a stop to their argument. "...The situation is already like this. Even if you argue, nothing will change. Instead..."Pidge looked at Isabelle, who shrank back in response.

"Isabelle, exactly what happened?"

The child shook her head.

"Did Minnie do this?"

The girl didn't answer. Then she looked like she just remembered something. "Where's Minnie?!" she screamed.

"I'm taking care of Minnie for you right now. Can you tell me some things about Minnie?"

"Give Minnie back to me!"

"When did Minnie start talking?"

"Give Minnie back! She's my friend!"

"Isabelle!" Pidge's imposing voice made the little girl shrink back even more. "Listen, your mother is injured. Minnie did that, right?"

Isabelle's eyes were filled with tears. She looked like an injured animal.

"This is troublesome for everyone. Does Minnie think this is okay?"

The little girl shook her head, unsure of what to say.

"Isabelle!" The moment Pidge shouted, Isabelle, started to cry. She rushed off the bed and ran to my side.

"Lance!" she cried out.

"Don't worry. Don't be scared," I soothed her.

Pidge's voice was still cold and stern. "Isabelle, Minnie, did she..."

I gave Pidge a cold stare. "You insensitive jerk! She's already crying so much, but you still won't stop!”

"Lance! Now's not the time for this!"

"Now is the time! You cold-hearted brat!"

Isabelle cried out, and I stroke her hair. "Don't worry, don't worry… It's not your fault."

"...I'm...sor...ry!" She held onto my hand. "Minnie told me I can't speak with anyone else! If I do, she'll punish everyone!"

"...Minnie said that?"

Sobbing, Isabelle nodded. "Minnie said I can't speak with other people. If I do, she'll hurt everyone else. But I really want to play with mommy and Lance...!"

Minnie's threatening her. Poor girl...

"When did Minnie start talking?" Pidge was using a softer tone this time.

"...After we moved here."

"What did she say at first?"

"She said my aunt's a witch. She said they want to kill me."

"What else?"

"Minnie said mother is also on the witch's side. Minnie said she'll protect me, but then I can't talk to other people...Sometimes I forget what she says, and I play with aunty. But then Minnie messes up my room and hides my toys."

"You didn't tell anyone about this?"

Isabelle shook her head. So that's why. I get it now. All the poltergeist activity that happened here: the toppled over furniture, the slanted furniture... it all makes sense now. All because she threatened Minnie. That day, Isabelle smiled at me and introduced me to Minnie. That's why Minnie got angry.

"She said that was my punishment. So..." the girl continued.

"—And then Minnie brought all those kids over?"

"Yes... A lot of kids too. Boys and girls that are about my age. All of them are Minnie's underlings."

Pidge looked at the girl with sympathy "We must quarantine Minnie for a while..."

It was a fresh and cool morning today. Rebecca still didn't return from the hospital, but Clara was with her now. Last night, Isabelle slept in her room.

When we went to the base, Coran stated his opinion, "Minnie must be the cause of all this."

"She's the reason for all of it?"

"Yes. For example, if a former inhabitant of this house died, it might've been Minnie's fault. I have a friend who specializes in destroying cursed dolls. I can ask him..."

Pidge immediately rejected, "That would be of no use. The problem isn't Minnie."

"What did you say? What do you mean it's not the doll's fault. Why?"

"Intuition. The problem is Minnie is being used as a vessel... The doll, however, is just a toy. A ghost in this house has possessed Minnie..." Pidge raised her eyes. "The doll isn't dangerous. We must find the real culprit."

Right when I was about to ask her to clarify, Rebecca dashed toward us, "Lance! Lance!"

"Mrs Woods! You're back from the hospital? Is your injury healed already?"

"Now's not the time to talk about that," was her swift response.

"What's wrong?"

"Please, come with me. Miss Gunderson, you too. Something strange happened."

"What?"

Rebecca pulled us into the corridor. Clara’s face was chalk-white as she looked at the wall. "Come quickly! Look!" Rebecca pointed at the wall behind us. After we all turned around, we sucked in a big breath.

Who did this...Words completely covered the wall.

"This bad child must be punished."

"Bad child, meaning Isabelle...?" I asked.

Pidge nodded in response. "Isabelle violated her promise with Minnie of speaking with other people. Minnie thinks Isabelle betrayed her... Lance..."

"Eh?"

"Stay with Isabelle and protect her."

"...Hey, Pidge, nothing will happen to Isabelle, right?"

"I don’t know." Pidge blinked, then lifted her head, "We can't back down now. I'll call in a professional."

"A professional?"

"Yes, Minnie is possessed by a spirit so I have to call in a professional."

"Are there people who can take care of it?"

"Of course— Exorcists." ...Ah!

Hunk? Hunk!

~

In the afternoon, I sat in the backyard with Rebecca as we played House with Isabelle. Meanwhile, Pidge and the others were cleaning the message on the wall. They didn't want Isabelle to see it. Minnie wasn't with Isabelle now. Coran sealed the doll in a box with a protective charm on it. Right now he's trying to burn the box, even though Pidge said it won't do any good.

After the writing on the wall, Clara left. There was a note on the living room table. "I cannot stay in this creepy house anymore." It was the only sentence on the paper. Rebecca was kind of surprised. Only she and Isabelle remained.

"Lance," Isabelle handed a paper cup to me. "Have some tea."

"Thank you."

This time I was reminded of my family again. It had been so long since I've seen them...Isabelle smiled. Before, she was threatened by Minnie so she wouldn't say anything. She must've been so lonely.

"Thank you."

"Mom, does your foot hurt?" Isabelle suddenly asked.

Rebecca shook her head. "It's fine now. As long as Isabelle cares about me, it'll be okay."

An angelic smile lit up the girl’s face. Thank goodness. I can relax now. "Mommy, do you want flowers?"

"Yes." And then Isabelle stood up to go get flowers. "I'll pick some flowers then. Lance, let's go."

"Okay." I let Isabelle pull me into the beautiful, purple flower garden.

"Just pick a few, Isabelle," Rebecca shouted to us.

Isabelle nodded, her hand reaching toward a flower. Suddenly she screamed.

"Isabelle?!"

The child turned and twisted in an effort to get her hand back. But her hand was stuck. I held onto her hands and pulled, but they just wouldn't budge.

"Isabelle!"

Rebecca limped toward us.

I moved the flowers apart in an attempt to see what was holding onto her hand. Isabelle's hand was immediately released. Crying, she ran off. Looking at the purple lavenders, I realized nothing was there.

"Isabelle! Wait!" Rebecca called out to the little girl.

I turned around and saw that Isabelle was running deep into the garden.

"Lance! Stop her! There's a pond over there!!"

"Minnie! I'm sorry!" Isabelle screamed as if she was running from something. Then she ran around the lotus tree. Her foot slipping in the process.

"Isabelle!" Rebecca yelled.

The girl reached out her hand but grabbed nothing but air. Without even having a chance to scream, she fell into the murky water.

"Isabelle!"

Rebecca and I ran toward the pond. The water splashed, while Isabelle sank. We reached the edge of the pond and I jumped after the girl. She reached her hand out, screaming something inaudible. I reached my hand out and grabbed hers.

"It's okay, it's okay...! Don't be scared." Rebecca hugged Isabelle as I pulled her out of the water.

Soon after, Pidge and the rest came running and pulled Rebecca and the crying Isabelle out. After Isabelle took a bath and put on new clothes, everyone relaxed a bit.

Rebecca constantly rubbed her hair, muttering, "Thank goodness... She's okay."

Is this Minnie's retaliation? Is this the revenge that Isabelle deserves for her betrayal? "This bad child must be punished"...

So this is her punishment.

Rebecca let the newly dressed Isabelle rest for a while.

Breathing hard, I rushed toward the base. Minnie, the doll that was supposed to be burnt to smithereens... Was sitting on the shelf...

I couldn't help but shout, "What... What happened!"

Coran angrily shook his head. "It didn't burn."

Huh?

"The box burned, but Minnie didn't."

Terror flashed through my body.

"Even though Pidge said it would be no use, I still thought it would work with a doll. I've encountered this situation before. The doll-loving girl died and possessed her doll. Every night, the doll would move and spill water everywhere."

Pidge still held onto her beliefs. "There's nothing wrong with the doll. The problem lies within the spirit that's possessing Minnie. That's all."

Allura looked at Pidge and Coran, then sighed. "Ah... If we had a psychometrist, then everything would be okay."

Psy... What?

Seeing the blank look on my face, Pidge answered. "Someone who can use psychometry."

What a bad explanation...

"So, this psymetry thing, what is it?"

"Psychometry. It's a type of ESP. The term was coined by an American scientist, Buchanan. In other words, it's token-object reading. After touching the object, all things about the object can be known. Information on the origin of the object, the past owners of the object, and the present owner can all be known after one touch.“ Coran explained.

Oh...

" So if a psychometrist were here, then we'd be able to know about Minnie's manufacture and her previous owner, right?"

"Yes."

"Wow...amazing. That must be really convenient." I sighed, then noticed everyone was laughing.

"Well, it definitely is convenient," Coran laughed sarcastically. "But psychometrists usually end up searching for corpses."

"Cor-corpses?" I was shocked.

"That's right. If they touch the missing person's belongings, then they can pinpoint the location of the missing person."

Gasp— What a horrible thing to have to do. This was the worst power I have ever heard of! I can’t imagine someone going through that process.

"There are many famous people that are known for this! Like England's Doctor Holt and France's Alex Tanous, or Kazuya Shibuya from Japan, all of them help the police find missing people." Pidge rolled her eyes. Coran seems like a fangirl!

"Oh—So the police there ask them to help?" 

"Something like that."

"Well, we can't get a psychometrist," Allura sighed. "At least call Keith. He might be able to help. What do you think?"

Pidge looked furious at that suggestion, but nodded in the end.” I…will call him…”...Could it be that Pidge doesn't like working with Keith? What happened with respecting those who deserve it?

After that, Pidge went to speak with Rebecca."... Do you know about the history of this house?"

"...History?"

"I've done some research on the past owners of this house."

Rebecca looked at her uneasily.

Pidge's eyes seemed to have a dangerous sparkle in it.

"Ten months before your family moved here the owner before this was the Watanabe family, who lived here for three years before selling the house due to work."

"So he didn't sell the house because weird stuff was happening here?" I asked.

Pidge nodded. "That's right. The neighbours also said they didn't hear of any ghost rumours. The family before that was the Wiliams family. Their seven-year-old daughter died here."

A seven-year-old...

"They say it's because of an illness. The family before them was the Hito family. In half a year, all three of their children died."

"All three?"

"Yes. A ten-year-old boy, an eight-year-old boy, and a seven-year-old girl. All were either because of accidents or illness. And so the family sold the house."

"......"

I felt sick.

"Before them there was the Spencer family. No one died in that family. They had a fifteen-year-old daughter, but nothing happened to her. The family before them, the Taniguchi family, had three children of the ages fourteen, fifteen, and eighteen. Nothing happened to them. However, a child of their relatives came here to play, and he died. He was about ten years old. The family before them was the Ikeda. Nothing happened to them while they lived here, but after they moved away, their seven-year-old daughter died. The family before them, the Tachibanas, had an eight-year-old daughter who died here."

"Hey..." I said, a bad feeling overcoming my stomach. "So what you're saying is... Children about seven years old are in danger here...?"

"Seems like it."

...Isabelle...!

"...Then what should I do?!" Rebecca cried out.

"If you want to move away, I won't stop you. But please wait. As of now, you will be in danger even if you move. I've already called a professional so if you want to move out, at least wait for him to come."

Rebecca nodded her head in consent.

The first one to arrive was Hunk. Clothed in priest robes, he came by taxi.

"Long time no see." Hunk said joyfully.

We dove into action.

"Isabelle's on the second floor, sleeping. The monk is guarding the doll."

"I wanna see Isabelle first. Can one of you take me to her?"

We went to Rebecca’s room and saw Isabelle asleep. After Hunk was introduced to the mother, he examined Isabelle's sleeping face.

"I'm not sure if I can help out, but I'll try my best." He read the bible, then used holy water to draw a cross on the wall and door. When he drew a cross on Isabelle's forehead, she budged slightly. Hunk took out a silver cross, then placed it on Isabelle's body.

"I'm not sure if this will help out, but better this than nothing."

"Thank you." Rebecca smiled at him.

Hunk then turned around to ask Pidge, “ Where's the doll?"

Something surprising was awaiting us.

Pidge strictly asked Shiro, who was watching over the equipment. "Shiro! Where's Minnie?!" he looked at Pidge, surprise evident in his face. "If you want to see Minnie, she's right..."

His hand stiffened as he pointed to nothing. Minnie's not there. She was supposed to be on the shelf.

"...Did it run away?"

"Sorry." Shiro bowed his head. Pidge bit her lip, then reverted back to her stoic mask. "It'll come back... Definitely."

It was 2:00 a.m. when the house started to shake. It was almost as if the poltergeist was looking for something in its rampage to turn the house upside down. All the furniture moved, rapping noises started, and stomping sounds could be heard.

"It's so... Strong," Hunk murmured uneasily. "The degree of it is so high."

Coran stared at the equipment. "Looks like Hunk's prayer is working."

...Seems like it. Minnie was practically searching everywhere for Isabelle.

"In other words... This boundary is effective."

"Boundary?"

"In simpler terms, it means a place that the spirit cannot enter." Coran almost went into a laughing fit again.

...Oh.

I nodded and then looked at the equipment. In the middle was one TV screen, shining bright red. The microphone was transmitting sounds.

"Pidge! The camera is receiving sound!"

"Switch it."

"Okay."

Sound overflowed from the speakers.

—It's a child's voice.

There were knocking sounds on the bed and walls. And though unclear, there was definitely a child's voice amidst all this, crying out.

"That's... Isabelle's invisible friend..." I whispered.

Pidge nodded, "Most likely. It's so noisy. How many children are there?"

The ghostly sounds faded earlier than usual, and soon a dark silence was looming over us. Nothing changed.

"It disappeared... Why?"

"I'm not sure, but..." she stopped short because she soon understood as Allura, who was supposed to be watching Isabelle, ran toward us. "Pidge!"

"What's wrong?"

"Minnie came back!"

What did you say? Allura handed a bundle wrapped in bedsheets to her.

"This. It's too scary." she whispered.

Hunk came over and unwrapped the bundle, closing the doll's marble eyes.

"When did it appear?"

"Just now. Rebecca noticed a bundle under the blanket near Isabelle's legs... She unfolded it and found Minnie."

"Is Isabelle okay?"

"...She's fine..."

Just then the ghostly sounds stopped. Even though the sounds were so loud and serious this time, why did they stop?

—Because Minnie found Isabelle.

It was 4 in the morning when Hunk finished preparing an altar. Minnie was placed inside, underneath a silver cross of Christ. Hunk took out a glass bottle, then started to pray. "In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God...Please look over us and protect us."

Hunk was speaking softly. The small silver cross had been laid across Minnie's forehead.

And at that moment.

Crack.

The sound of the cross breaking. Minnie's eyes fluttered open. Behind me, Allura took in a deep breath. It couldn't have opened its eyes. Dolls are inanimate objects. Hunk shifted around slightly, then continued his prayer. Minnie didn't move again. Its hands were stiff, its marble eyes open.

"All things were made through Him, and without Him, nothing was made." He opened his thick bible and raised the glass bottle. "In the beginning..."Hunk read and moved the glass bottle. He sprinkled holy water onto Minnie while her body rumbled. "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men."

Hunk read and sprinkled holy water at the same time.

Finally, a wisp of smoke rose from Minnie's forehead, followed by a cracking sound. The doll's skirt fluttered in the wind.

"The light shineth in the darkness and the darkness comprehended it not."

Minnie's marble eyes rolled down, and the cross on its forehead slid down. There was a scar of the cross on its forehead.

"The exorcism was successful," Hunk announced as he stopped his prayer. He turned around to look at us. "However, the ghost did not disappear. Just to be safe, I think we should burn it."

Pidge nodded and handed the doll to Coran. He burned Minnie in the backyard. This time the doll was easily overtaken by the fire as it burned to smithereens.


	11. Chapter 11

The next day Keith arrived. Dressed in his usual outfit, he entered the house with a frown. His face countered in pain.

“Keith are you alright?” asked Allura concerned. She hold his shoulder.

“What-what’s wrong with this house…it’s…”

“Huh?”

“It’s the first time I’ve seen a house with so many spirits trapped…” his face became paler than usual.

Allura and I helped him to the base. The moment he entered, his eyes locked with Pidge’s.

“Mister Kogane…”

Hunk helped him to a chair and gave him a glass of water.

“This house… it’s awful…it’s so uncomfortable…”

“What do you see?” asked Pidge, as she took out her notebook to write down what Keith said.

"I can feel the spirits of many children gathered here. They're all children. On my way here, I saw three of them headed toward this house. This is like a congregation of ghost children." He said, focusing on the floor.

"Can you call them out?"

"There's no need to call them out. All of them are wailing so loudly that I want to plug my ears. What do you want to ask? I’m sure I can help you ."

"... The first child who died here is Tachibana. Call her out."

"If I try to call her down over here, I'll be possessed by a different spirit instead. So please wait a moment. She's called Tachibana, right?" Keith asked, "Can you lead me to the hall?"

Pidge raised her eyebrow and helped Keith to reach the hallway. We all left the base after them. Keith looked at the ceiling, a frown on his face and his eyes closed. Even if I didn’t like this guy I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. Having to see these kinds of things must be awful.

"Tachibana, are you there?" he said to the ceiling. He spoke again, to the ceiling, but I didn't hear anything. Suddenly a gust of wind blew Keith's black hair. "Please, listen to me. Will you please answer my questions? ...What did you say? Please speak louder..." he said in a soft voice. Suddenly his eyes became unfocused, and his face expressionless. "...Really...so that's how it is? ...Yes, I know now... So that's what happened."

He was talking to himself. It was kind of scary, almost as if he was possessed.

"...Who... Is it? ...That can't be... It's not like that. You can't believe it... Right... You can't."

Suddenly a sound came from the floor.

"......!"

We all waited for the moment to come. The room began to sway while the rapping sounds started up again. The chandelier rocked along. Bang! Knocking sounds rapped through. Everything was noisy.

"What, what is this?!" Allura shouted.

Hunk suddenly ran to the stairs.

"Hunk?!" I shouted after him, but he kept going up the stairs, then turned around. "I'm going to check on Isabelle!"

The rapping sounds almost completely covered up his reply. Knocking sounds on the walls and stomping sounds of the floor filled the air. The floor swayed, and the temperature dropped.

"Tomiko!"

Shouted a voice in the distance.

The sound came closer.

...Keith?! His face was paler than usual. His expression was hard to describe, but it was almost like a mask of hatred. Normally his face wouldn't be like that. And right in front of my eyes, he reached his hand out toward Pidge, who was the one nearest to him.

"Keith!" she shouted as she grabbed his hand with a force I didn’t think she could possess. "Coran! Stop him! He's been possessed!"

Coran stuck his hands together and chanted, "On asanmo ginei un hatta!"

After his recitation, Keith's body became limp. Shiro caught the unconscious boy.

The rapping sounds stopped.

~

When we were rewinding the tape, back in the base, Keith woke up.

"How do you feel?" Pidge asked.

Keith shook his head, his face was still deathly pale. "I'm fine... I seemed to have been possessed."

"It was due to my negligence. Sorry— Did you find Tachibana?" Pidge looked at him apologetically.

"Yes." Keith nodded, then looked at us. "There is a woman's spirit here." He continued slowly. "The evil spirit is that woman. She's hidden deep inside... At least that's what I think." He paused for a moment. "The children's spirits have been gathered here. They're tired of this place, and they want to go home, but they can't because they're lost... Does everyone follow?"

"So basically, the children are stuck here?"

"Yes. The woman's spirit had gathered all the children here. She's pretending to be their mother, and she keeps bringing more kids here. Tachibana realized that she isn't her mother."

...Pretending to be their mother and calling them out here...

"That woman isn't only tricking those kids, but she's also making them bring more children here. She's making the kids pretend to be friends so that they can bring in more living children. Tachibana is the leader of the children, but she also can't take it anymore. She says she's tired, in pain, and that she can't stand it anymore."

...That's too much.

Pidge asked Keith, "Do you remember calling for Tomiko?"

"Tomiko..." Keith thought. "Yes, I remember... That's the woman's child, a daughter in fact... That female spirit is looking for her daughter, Tomiko. That's why she's calling in more children."

"...I see," the boss said quietly before standing up.

"Pidge?"

"In other words, that woman is searching for her own daughter, but in the end, she is simply collecting all these children." She said in a hard tone. "Since she can't find her own child, she tricks all these other innocent children into coming, and not only that, she's also utilizing them as tools."

I remembered the children's painful cries of sorrow.

"Those children cannot pass on. That woman won't let them go. They're simply wandering in Chuute... They can't go anywhere," she continued.

"...Ah," Coran nodded in agreement.

"Ghosts that are lingering around do not know that they have died. It's the same with those children. To those children, they believe they are lost, not dead. That's why they want to go home...That woman knows this and is using it to her advantage by pretending to be their mother. She knows that she's not going to Heaven and that she will just suffer." Keith continued.

Pidge picked up her jacket.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going out for a while. I don't know when I'm coming back. Take care of Isabelle."

"Pidge!" I didn't even have time to call out to her. What’s her problem with leaving like this? I’m getting tired of her inexplicable actions…

~

"What is she doing?" Allura asked confused "…It's almost dark."

Shiro looked up. "Well, let's just do this then. Tonight Isabelle should sleep in a hotel."

"Wouldn't that create problems?"

"At least it'll be safer than sleeping at home. Hunk can stay at the hotel. Last time, his prayer gave that ghost a hard time finding Isabelle. If the distance is greater, it might be more effective. Make a charm, get Allura to help, and place the charm on the hotel room. That way, those spirits won't be able to enter."

"Okay."

"Allura, go to the hotel and help Hunk.” Shiro gave orders like a true leader. “Keith, go with them.".

"I got it." Keith stood up. "Then, what about you?"

"Since the prayer seemed to be effective, Coran should try an exorcism," Shiro said before shooting a glance at me. "Lance, help him prepare."

It was already dusk, and the night was imminent. I would have to be faster with the preparations than usual.

Rebecca packed up and took Isabelle with her to a hotel.

Before they left, Allura had made a protective charm— With a pen, she wrote some strange characters— Right now, Isabelle was holding it.

"This way, those spirits won't be able to see her."

Sceptical about Allura’s charm, I asked Keith, "Do those things work?"

"Those charms seem to be effective. —Don't worry. Those ghosts didn't even notice."

We saw the five people off, then started to prepare for the exorcism. We spent a good amount of time moving all the furniture out and setting up the altar.

"Hey, Coran, what's a Chuute?" I asked him while taking out some equipment.

"The crevice between the living world and the afterworld. In Buddhism, after someone dies he will stay in this place for forty-nine days. It's a place where one cannot be cleansed. It's like a bridge between the living and the dead. Now, do you understand?"

"Kind of."

"This doesn't always happen to people facing death. It's like going around the Gates of Hell and then coming back. Haven't you heard of this before?"

"Yeah, I did."

"The experience of near death. Some people will say they've experienced something like this: They're standing beside a river, and there's a bridge. Many people are crossing the bridge, but they themselves do not cross it. Then they wake up."

"Yeah, yeah." I've heard that before.

"So at the end, when the deceased person crosses the bridge, he goes into the other world. After crossing the bridge, he will forget all the pain he's experienced in this world and start a whole new life in the next world. But some people do not want to cross the bridge because they have some unfinished business."

"Like finding your daughter..."

Just like that woman who's trying to find Tomiko. After dying, your spirit stays in that place.

"So that's what a ghost is...?"

"Correct."

"Since that woman wants to find her daughter, she didn't cross the bridge, and that's why she called all these children here. She's not releasing the children, and that's why they aren't able to see the bridge."

"...Isn't that infuriating?"

"Don't be angry," he said. I looked into his eyes. Coran managed to put a smile on his face. "Aren't we trying hard to get her to see the bridge?"

"I guess so."

After helping out the monk, I went over to Shiro and moved the equipment in Isabelle’s room to the living room. After I finished moving the equipment, I went to the base to help Shiro make preparations. When we finished making all the wire connections, Coran started his exorcism.

A few moments after he started his exorcism, sounds filled the room. At the same time, the temperature dropped. The cold air accumulated along the floor. In the thermography graph, the floor was blue.

The video camera moved too and combined with the thermography chart, we could see the places where the temperature was the lowest.

The video cameras faced the middle of the room and the floor right in front of the window.

...The temperature is lowest at...

Suddenly a sound came from the living room, a rapping sound. It was almost like a shock wave. The floor rocked, as did Coran. In the middle of the living room, a pit was forming. And then a sound vibrated through the entire room.

Stomp, stomp, stomp... The sound of somebody running. A smoky substance started to fill the room. The thermography chart showed a dark blue color.

The altar swayed, then fell to the ground.

"Coran, forget it! Leave the living room!" Shiro shouted into the microphone.

"Idiot! How can you ask a man to run away!" the monk shouted.

Is now the time to argue about that?

The smoke thickened, and Coran’s body became hard to see. The mournful cries of the children filled the room.

I stared at the TV. A black shadow appeared in the middle of the room, behind him. It slowly started to form into a shape.

"Coran! Your back! It's that woman!"

He turned around and looked straight through the black figure.

It's dangerous! He can't see her! I quickly stood up.

"Lance, don't go!" Shiro shouted as he tried to stop me.

How can I not go! I ran to the living room and opened the door. The room was covered in smoke...

"Coran, are you okay?"

"Idiot! Why did you come!!"

Because...

The room swayed violently. I lost my balance as the floor distorted.

It's dangerous!

"Hey, you have to leave!"

I walked into the room.

I can't see... The dark figure... What do I do? I could only see it through the video camera. I weakly walked toward the monk. When my hand reached out toward him, it felt like my hand went through something. The air felt cold and sticky.

And then I heard some words in my mind.

...Do not hinder me.

...How dare you.

...This is inexcusable...

Suddenly my body froze, and my hand, which was reaching for Coran, wouldn't move. A pair of hands encircled my leg... Icy-cold hands. I was thrown to the ground.

“Coran! Help!” I was being pulled backwards. Behind me was the pit. Another pair of hands grasped my ankle as I was tugged backwards into the hole. "No!" I yelled as I grabbed onto the floor with all my strength.

"Lance!"

Shiro rushed in. He ran to me and stretched out his hand. But I couldn't reach it. The eerie hand grabbing my foot pulled harder. My bones almost cracked. I was going to fall into the hole.

“Ah! I'm going to fall!"

Shiro leaned forward and stretched out his hand. Right when our hands almost touched, a force pulled me down. My waist was already inside the well. Save me! I'm going to fall! I remembered their nest. The centre of the cold. The depths of the well. All the little children stuck down there.

The floor swayed violently, taking down Shiro and Coran. Then I was falling. The well was up to my chest now as I grabbed onto the floorboards.

No, I'm going to fall!

It was hard trying to hold onto the hard floor. The rough edges cut into my hands. I felt helpless. "Lance!!"

Suddenly a force pulled me backwards, my body fell past the opening of the well, and my hold on the floor broke.

.........!

I didn't even have time to scream.

I reached my hand out toward the opening as I lunged down into the darkness.

I could hear the voices of two people.

But their words were unclear...

~

...It's dark.

This isn't Rebecca’s house. Memories came crushing back to me.

A girl was playing in a backyard. I couldn't see clearly because of my blurry vision. But I could tell that she was almost Isabelle’s age. She was also wearing some old fashioned clothes. What time era is this?

"Tomiko! Tomiko!"

A woman's cry rang from inside the house. Her face became distorted. Suddenly a man appeared near the girl. Realization struck me! It's dangerous! Don't go with him! The man and the girl exchanged a few words, and then the man took the girl's hand and walked off with her.

The shrill cry from the house continued.

Don't go! You can't go with him! I tried to shout, but no sounds came out.

The man walked away as he held onto the girl's hand. They went toward the pond. The girl vanished into the distance.

"Tomiko!"

A cry of misery. Ah, it's my voice. That was me.

I dashed outside. White fog engulfed the pond, and I couldn't see anything. My tears fell as I bent down. I lowered my head and realized there was a well. Deep inside the well, water was flowing. A woman was standing near the edge. I could feel her emotions. Sadness….despair

I unconsciously faced the room to see the weeping woman.

I felt sad for her. She wanted to jump! No! I was about to walk there, but then a pair of hands stopped me.

Turning around, I saw Pidge staring back at me. Her eyes looked pained. She shook her head, the sadness evident on her face.

I turned back to see the woman.

Sobbing and whimpering, she leaned against the well.

Crying, crying... She cried out before jumping into the well.

The sound of water dripping.

...Then I woke up.

What was that just now? I knew it was a dream, but why would I dream about that?.

I slowly stood up, and my entire body ached.

This is...the bottom of the well.

“Lance!”

This voice… It was Shiro. His face appeared and I felt myself smiling. “I’m okay!” I shouted. ”But I can’t climb back…”

After I replied, I heard some footsteps. Shiro quickly appeared again. His hands held onto the well as he agilely made his way down. Coran then tossed us a ladder

"Are you hurt?"

"Nope."

While standing, I thought for a moment.

...The buried well.

I immediately understood. This well is the same one that woman jumped into. Since her child disappeared, she committed suicide because of the pain. And then she became a ghost. And now she's still looking for her child...

Standing on the ladder, Shiro reached his hand out toward me.

I was finally on the ground again.

~

"Kidnapping?" Coran asked as he cleaned my leg wound.

"Yeah, that's what I think. Tomiko was kidnapped, and then her mother jumped into the well to commit suicide. What a vivid dream, right?"

"Did you hit your head?" he giggled. "You're not even a medium, so does your dream even count?"

Shiro contemplated, "...Even though we don't know if it's true...it could serve as a valuable clue."

"Ah, so you think so too?" I asked.

He was still deep in thought.

"Hey, what do you think? I doubt we can purify this place," Coran admitted.

"...I don't think we can force them out," he finally spoke "We should wait until Pidge comes back before we attempt another exorcism. Exorcisms use brute force, which is why they always try to resist us."

"...Aren't there other ways? First of all, we don't even know when she will be back," the monk replied.

"Pidge has a clear idea of our situation. She wouldn't loaf around and waste time so she'll definitely be back soon."

"...You sure have faith in your boss."

Shiro shot a glare at Coran. "She has never let anyone down before. That's why I believe in her." Turning toward me, he continued, "Rest for a while. Your head might hurt after your fall."

"Okay."

Actually, my whole body ached so much I could barely stand it. I obediently lay on the sofa.

~

I was floating, drifting.

I opened my eyes.

In the darkroom, I could hear the whirring sounds of the equipment. I was looking at our base, but it was so luminous and warm Pidge was standing near me. For some reason, she now had long hair and her usual black clothes were replaced by a green dress. What was my mind producing...

I looked at her face. She was smiling. Ah, how I love the way she smiles. The real Pidge would never smile that way.

"Pidge?" I asked while lying down. "Can we save Isabelle?"

If we're defeated, then the girl will be taken away by that woman, just like all those other dead children.

"Everything will be fine," she reassured me with a warm smile.

"Why are you so different from my last dream? Are you a product of my imagination…"

...Ahhh, what am I saying at a time like this.

She smiled again. "No..."

Such a warm smile. I was satisfied with this.

Suddenly I heard a sound. The door in our base opened. This time I was really awake. Hurriedly, I shot up from the sofa. Pidge had just come back. Her hair was back to normal. Why would I dream of her that way? Stupid hormones…

Pidge looked at me. "Are you awake?" Not even a slight tone of warmth.

"You came back?!"

"If I didn't come back, how would I be here."

...Ah, sorry. That was a dumb question.

Pidge faced Shiro now. "Replay the recording."

"Okay."

Coran came in too. Allura, Hunk and Keith, who were supposed to be guarding Isabelle, were also here.

"What about Isabelle?" I asked.

Allura shrugged in response. "Pidge said we could come back and leave her with Rebecca."

...What?!

"Pidge! Is it okay if we just leave those two there?"

"It shouldn't be a problem," she responded bluntly.

"What do you mean 'it shouldn't be a problem'...how irresponsible."

"Tonight this case will be solved." She looked back at me with her deep, profound eyes. There was no worry and no hesitation.


	12. Chapter 12

"Will it actually succeed?!"

"Did you think I was out doing nothing the past few days?" she retorted disdainfully. "Even with this many people, everything is still a mess."

...Your personality really sucks.

Unconvinced, Allura inquired, "Are you sure this will work? You don't know everything so some things might be unclear. That woman isn't an easy one to deal with."

Pidge's eyes were overflowing with contempt. "I knew from the start that the woman was no ordinary ghost. From a poltergeist standpoint, it was obvious."

For a moment Allura had nothing else to say so Coran pursued it instead, "Well, let's listen to your strategy and decide whether or not it's good."

Not looking at the T.V. anymore, Pidge crossed her arms. "The situation is obvious. That woman wants to find her child."

Allura interrupted, "The problem is, how do we get her to give up?"

"As long as we give her the child, things will be okay."

"What?!"

"If that child is here, that woman will be satisfied and pass on."

"And where...would that child be? How old is she now? We probably won't find her..."

"Are you implying that, with my intelligence, I did not think of this? Bringing Tomiko here would not only be impossible but also meaningless. Even if she sees Tomiko now, she might not recognize her."

"...Then what do you mean..."

Pidge ignored Allura. "Mister Kogane, how's the situation now?"

Keith listened carefully for a moment. "The living room...They're still in the living room. They haven't tried to go to the hotel yet..."

Allura butted back into the conversation, "Hey, why don't we consider our safety first?!"

Pidge shot her a cold glare. "Well, that's not something a professional would say."

"Even professionals have limits! This place is dangerous! I've seen many haunted houses, and this is the first time I've seen one this bad."

...Then what about Isabelle? Are you going to leave her to die?!

I turned toward Coran. He calmly nodded his head. "If we don't handle this situation carefully, we may become jibakurei ourselves—"

"...Hey!"

I was about to interrupt him, but then Allura beat me to it. "Quitting while you're ahead is also a strategy!"

"But-!" I was about to continue, but then Pidge calmly called me out. "Lance, anyone who wants to go home can leave. I do not want to work with mediums of that calibre."

Allura was fuming.

Coran pressed Pidge, "So will your plan be successful?"

"Whether or not you trust me is your choice," she replied in a cold tone.

The uncle and niece exchanged glances. "Okay..." Coran stood up. "Then I'll just trust you again. I'll suffer through this again and try to exorcise the ghost."

"Oh, forget it. I'll join too..." Allura murmured hesitantly as she stood up.

"Try our best. At least until we fall," the monk offered. "So what will we be doing?"

Pidge instructed us, "As of now, we have enough manpower. The underlying problem is the woman. If we don't bring her out, everything we do will be meaningless."

"How do we bring her out?" Allura retorted.

"Disperse the children," she said in her sharp voice, "Allura, can you make some charms?"

"Of course I can..."

"First, make a significant amount of charms. Hunk will assist you."

"Okay, but..." Coran murmured.

Pidge patted his back, cutting him off. "Perform another exorcism."

"What?!"

"The idea isn't to prevent the ghosts from getting near Isabelle. It was to not let the ghosts leave the house in the first place."

Coran blinked his eyes in surprise. "I don't know if that will work..."

"It doesn't necessarily need to strong. Just good enough to keep the spirits from leaving and to leave the Demon's Gate open."

"What's the Demon's Gate?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Quiet, Lance."

"I want to know!"

"Located in the northeast quarter, it's the gate in which evil spirits leave through. Originally it's the easiest place to leave, and since the charms will be blocking all other passages of exit, the ghosts that are heading toward the hotel will have to pass through the Demon's Gate, —Coran and Allura will disperse the spirits leaving the Demon's Gate."

Allura commented, "We can't solve the problem this way. Even if we do disperse the spirits, they will end up accumulating anyway!"

"Don't worry. As long as we temporarily reduce the number of spirits near that woman, it'll be okay. Hunk, go to the living room and disperse the spirits there."

"Got it!"

Pidge nodded and stood up.

Coran called her, "Hey, I understand that we handle the children's' spirits, but who will be doing the most important exorcism of that woman?"

...That's right. Coran and Allura are both outside the room, while Hunk will be staying inside. He can't do it by himself... But then Pidge said things will be okay if we disperse the spirits.

"Can it be...Pidge, are you doing it?"

Pidge smirked confidently and softly clapped her hands together. "We're starting!"

~

Charms were pasted all over the walls. To prevent the ghosts from leaving through the living room, Hunk stayed there and sprinkled holy water. He recited the prayer used earlier on Isabelle. At that time, the spirits couldn't immediately find the girl; instead, they just wandered around. Outside, Coran and Allura had stuck their charms onto the house. Only one place wasn't sealed by charms. The Demon's Gate. Hunk and Pidge were in the living room while Shiro looked over the equipment.

Pidge told me and Keith to stay in base, but the medium insisted on being in the living room. _"Lance, the living room will be sort of dangerous. Stay with Keith. Things will be troublesome if he gets possessed."_ Recalling Pidge's words, I followed Keith to the living room.

It was dawn, and the sun was almost up. Even if the sky didn't seem much lighter.

What was Pidge planning? That woman was looking for her daughter—Tomiko. Since Tomiko wasn't here, she wouldn't give up. She couldn't cross the bridge into the other world. If she found Tomiko, she would be happy and satisfied enough to leave for the other world. —But, how could we do that? Tomiko was not here. She might not even have been in the living world anymore.

"Hunk," Pidge called out, urging him to start.

Hunk nodded and started his prayer, which I'd seen many times already. Not long afterwards, the room became foggy and the sounds began.

It was starting...

I looked around and didn't see any shadows or ghosts. The only indication that they were here was the warping sounds coming from the ground. Knocking sounds on the wall and thumping sounds in the furniture started too. Keith's face was pale white.

"Are you okay? Do you want to go back to base?" I whispered.

Keith shook his head. "No, I'm fine... I'll stay here..."

Do you want to stay with Pidge that badly? I really wanted to say something cold to him. I'm scared too... Being pulled into the well was a bad enough experience.

"There are two ways to exorcise spirits..." Keith explained, his eyes searching the room. "Cleansing them and removing them. Cleansing them involves talking with the spirit and finding out why they can't cross the bridge. But this is something that only a medium can do...Pidge's not a medium, but she wants to exorcise the ghost," he continued to explain.

"Exorcise it?"

"Killing it with brute force..."

A different method? Persuading them is the same as cleansing them. And not paying any attention to the spirit's troubles is killing it.

When Keith and I were softly talking to each other, the rapping sounds grew louder. Footsteps sounded from the floor. The sound of children trying to run away. A cold layer of air enshrouded the floor, as white, wispy smoke hovered about the floor, encircling the entire room. In the middle, a vague, lone figure started to materialize.

Sorrowful cries filled my ears. The desperate cries became louder.

Hunk's prayer was making them flee.

"......!"

Someone tapped my shoulder, but when I turned around, no one was there. My hair was being pulled. I wasn't the only one either. Hank constantly turned around sprinkling holy water every time in order to push the spirit away.

The barrier was working.

The floor distorted, and I couldn't help but sway along with it. A flash of light shone on the wall.

The room swang intensely.

...It's too strong!

The sudden shaking of the floor made me lose my balance as I was thrown into the air. Hunk and the others were struggling too. I could feel someone clutching onto my wrist. I tried to pull my hand back, but then an unseen force tugged me back onto the ground.

"Lance!" Hunk cried out as he turned around and sprinkled holy water in my direction.

The force on my wrist vanished. The smoke engulfed the entire room. He didn't stop his prayer. The objects the smoke was moving were dropped temporarily.

"Keith! What's the situation?!" Pidge turned to look at us.

"They're running away. The amount of spirits has decreased dramatically... They're leaving the living room."

The remaining spirits cried as they left. I was probably the only one who heard them.

The ghosts moved sluggishly. They were all trapped in this house, with nowhere to go. They couldn't go back to their house. They were sad, lonely spirits who called out to more children. And now Hunk's prayer was hurting them.

...I kind of understand Keith's feelings now. Those children are too pitiful. Loneliness and sorrow... They keep getting pushed around.

Same for the woman. Trapped in her own sadness, she couldn't stop looking for Tomiko, and now she had created a snaring trap of sorrow.

But we couldn't leave things as they were...

The mist in the living room started to dissipate, proving that the number of spirits was decreasing. The spirits were pushed away with the help of Hunk, Coran and Allura.

"Can't you cleanse them?" I asked.

Keith shook his head. " As long as that woman is here, it can't be done. If we don't cleanse that woman first..."

Keith abruptly took a deep breath, his blanched face reflecting his fear. He stared at the well.

"...She's coming..."

And then there was silence.

A thin wispy mist drifted our direction.

We held our breath.

And then an empty sound filled the air.

Water drops in the well could be heard. And then, a voice bellowed.

The well—

A bluish light floated above the well.

A transient figure arose.

We all stared. It was an indistinct figure of a woman. Her hair was wrapped up in a bun, and her lanky figure was covered in a kimono. She looked like she might disappear any minute.

"Tomiko isn't here!" Keith exclaimed. "She's not here anymore!"

The figure lowered her head, but didn't respond.

"Please understand! Tomiko isn't here!" Keith cried out desperately. "These children aren't her! Please release them! They all want to return to their mothers!"

The medium stopped.

The transient figure was halfway up from the well; the edge of the well reached her waist. Small white things appeared on the brim of the well. It was as if they were larva. White, small, children's...fingers.

The little fingers reached for the floor.

They want to come up.

On the other side was another pair of fingers. And another, and another... The edge of the well was covered with little, white fingers as the children tried their best to get out.

"No! Don't come here!" Keith shouted.

I was rendered speechless.

Hunk stood in front of us as he prepared to sprinkle the holy water again. Suddenly a force knocked him off his feet.

"Hunk!" I cried out.

And then, the woman whose head was lowered started to raise her head. Eyes filled with hatred. She didn't hear Keith at all. She was still concentrated on finding Tomiko. She had no plans of leaving until then. Her gloomy eyes swept the floor. They stopped at the black figure near the door.

A figure black as night. A pallid face.

Pidge stared back at the woman. Her dark eyes were full of confidence. She raised her right hand.

"Pidge, stop! Please wait!" Keith cried out. Was she going to kill the woman?!

Pidge didn't bother looking at Keith. She just stared at the woman, her arm raised high, flashing the object in her hand to the ghost. The woman watched Pidge's movements intensively.

"Your daughter is here," she calmly announced.

There was a wooden board cut in the shape of a human in her hand. A spell paper was pasted on it. The woman stared at the wooden piece.

"Take those children...with you as well." Pidge tossed the wooden piece into the air.

The woman cried out. The wooden figurine spun in the darkness, slowly spinning toward the woman. The blurred trajectory faded into a figure. —The figure of a child.

I get it now. That's Tomiko.

The woman hunched back and reached out for the child. Tomiko ran into the woman's arms. The air in the room began to revolve counterclockwise. The woman spun too, her hands wispy like smoke. The moment her faded hands touched Tomiko, a white light flashed.

"......!"

What happened? What was that light?

The woman embraced Tomiko. A white light emanated from them. The woman hugged the wooden figurine; I couldn't see her expression. But from the way she held her head and shoulders...she looked satisfied. A white light encircled the woman. She melted into the brightness. The light engulfed the entire room.

A warm, serene light. It wasn't blinding at all. It was just very warm.

The light slowly faded away. The misty children's figure appeared distinct for a moment in the white light. Soon after, they too disappeared into the light. I saw it. In the midst of the fog, I saw the smiles of the children. The white light dissipated, leaving the dusky room the way it was before it all happened.

Keith stood up.

"...They're gone...the spirits have been cleansed...!"

~

It was the beginning of August when I returned to work. After the case, Pidge let me enjoy the rest of my break at home. I was very thankful for those free days after that awful case. I was glad that the investigation had finished happily, but I was still terrified of everything that happened during it.

Today was Friday and like usual I was at my desk working on some paper. I promised Shiro that I’ll start learning more about the occult after I finished my papers. The weather became more and more hot each day and I couldn’t wait for a trip to the beach.

“Ah… I can’t do this anymore…” I sighted after finishing the papers.

Shiro smiled at me and continued his work at the computer. Pidge was in her dungeon, in a bad mood.

The door opened and I prepared to greet the client when Hunk stepped in the office.

“Hey man! How are you!” I said joyfully as I hugged him.

“I was just passing by and decided to come and see how are you!” he said as he sat down on the sofa.

I prepared him a cup of tea and Shiro joined us to talk. The door opened a Coran and Allura entered the room

“Hello everybody!” Allura smiled and hugged me and Hunk “We were passing by and decided to greet you!” she smiled and I gave her a cup of tea.

The day suddenly became better.

"Where's Pidge?" Allura asked.

"The director is in her office, thinking things over", I replied in a serious tone.

"Huh? What is she doing?"

"I don't know," I replied. "That's what she told me. She's staring at a map, thinking things over. I think she's planning to travel. We shouldn’t bother her”

I served everyone some tea, then prepared a special cup for the boss. When I was about to finish, the office door opened and Pidge came out looking bored. As she looked around the room, her eyes widened.

“What are you doing here?”

“We came to see what you're up to!” Coran smiled.

“This isn’t a coffee shop.” She angrily took the cup of tea from my hands and went back to her cave. “When you finish your drinks, leave. I have work to do and you’re making too much noise” With that, she closed the door with a crack.

"She’s not in a good mood today…” I said in a whisper.

Five minutes later, the door opened again and the bell rang. If it was another visitor I would … It’s Keith. The last person I wanted to see…

He greeted us. ”Is Pidge here?” I nodded. What was his business with her? I looked at him suspiciously as he went to her office “You shouldn’t disturb her…” I started, but he already entered her room.

I looked at the others with confusion, but they continued their conversation without a care.

“I called Mrs. Woods yesterday to see how things were going in the house.” Allura said with a smile. "Isabelle is doing amazing and the house is peaceful again. She was happy to finally sleep without worry”

“I’m glad to hear that. Maybe I’ll visit her on the weekend” I said thinking about the little girl. She went through so much pain because of that ghost, but with our help, she could now forget about the awful events.

Our conversation was suddenly interrupted by the director’s door opening. Keith walked out of the room, heading to the exit. Pidge followed him, taking her backpack from the rack.

“I’m going out for a bit. Shiro, close the office after you finish the report!” She said as she left with Keith.

Didn’t she say she had work to do? What was she doing leaving with Keith?? Were they going on a date or something? I felt surprisingly bitter.

“I sense some jealousy, Lance. I think this is just a misunderstanding, you should relax” Hunk said peacefully." If you frown too much your face will stay like that!"

I was furious! What’s up with her?

“I know what will cheer you up, Lance!” Allura exclaimed cheerfully, grabbing my hand” Let’s all go out and eat something. Your shift almost ended, right?”

“That’s a great idea!” said Hunk and hugged me

After giving it a thought, this didn’t sound so bad. That’s how I’ll forget about that narcissist tea-drinking brat that had occupied my thoughts for the last couple of days…

Yeah, I could forget about her for some hours…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the end of part 2!! It was much shorter than the first one, but that's because I tried to make the chapters longer! 
> 
> In the next case, we'll dive down into the world of 'voodoo dolls' and curses! Also, Pidge is going to make some cute magic tricks!
> 
> As always, suggestions, kudos and criticism are welcomed!! Thanks!!!


	13. Chapter 13

After opening the door, the October air rushed inside. School has started again and I progressed into the 11th grade... Closer to adulthood...wow

Throughout the summertime, I continued working at Gunderson Psychic Research, but we didn't have any big cases. Assembling things, registering things, transcribing tables of contents, and ordering books, in other words, I did manual work. It was fair to assume that the level of my job would only be that high. What is more, we were not doing any ghost hunting either. Because things were moving slowly, and there was no other way to go about doing this. But every day, I continued to do who knows how much meaningless work.

The sound of the doorbell rung. Finaaaally! The doorbell was my saviour! Right. It was a guest.

The client who just came in looked like a high school girl.

"I heard that this is where they do investigations on ghosts, but..."

"Yes. That's right," I said.

The girl looked at me with confusion. She couldn’t be older than me, with long blond hair and big green eyes. "What kind of situation are you in?" I tried to escape the silence.

"It's about this classmate of mine…. She was possessed by a fox spirit. Can you help her? A doctor looked at her, but she just seems to be getting worse. A spirit showed up too. Is the director here?"

I led her to the sofa.

"Please, call the director now."

I knocked on my boss's door.

"...Boss?"

A bored voice responded, and I opened the door. The director of "Gunderson Psychic Research" had a map opened wide on her desk, like always. Her beautiful, deep, golden-brown gaze fell on me. My knees felt weak.

"...A client?"

"Yes, it sounds like someone got possessed."

The director frowned slightly. This map was quite an obstacle to her because she kept thinking about it. At the time, nobody dared to even mention anything about spirits to her. Because then, she seemed to dislike people unrelated to the paranormal field even more. Reluctantly, Pidge stood up. She had been looking at the map all day, so it was no wonder she was in such a bad mood.

The girl sitting on the sofa was uncomfortable. When I left Pidge's office, I noticed she was tense and pale. The director walked calmly to the sofa, and her head tilted down slightly as she spoke. "Nice to meet you. I'm the director, Pidge Gunderson."

The girl looked so dazed that it surprised even me. The 17-year old head of the office looked completely unfazed. "What are the details of your problem?"

"Umm. There was a classmate who played with an Ouija Board at school last month. A friend of ours saw it too, and it seems that she's been possessed by a fox spirit. Since then, she has been acting weird."

"Weird?"

"Sometimes she acts strange. She says and does weird things."

Pidge sighed softly. "Be more specific."

The girl hesitantly lowered her head. "Oh... In the middle of class, she jumped onto a table, laughed, and then cursed the teacher. Also, one time in P.E., when we were practising the long jump, she suddenly started... to eat sand from the sandpit."

...Huh? Sand? The girl's face was distorted in concern.

Pidge's fingers entwined together as she pondered the situation. "And you want the fox spirit to leave," she said presumingly.

"Yes." The high school girl nodded.

Lifting her head, Pidge stared back at the girl. "My apologies—but I cannot help you. Whether or not she's possessed...I suggest you take her to a neurologist." She responded as she stood up.

"Well then." She let out an indignant scoff, but Pidge didn't take notice. Her brown eyes turned toward me.

"Lance, please lead this lady out."

"But..."

...You're not helping her? Can't you at least (if her friend is possessed) recommend her to someone else?

Without turning around, Pidge continued to walk toward her room.

"Um, boss...!" I called out.

Pidge turned around, looking at me with a different expression. "Well, Lance. Tea."

...Okay.

If she made that kind of face, then it was no good. She wouldn't listen to a word I said.

After the stoic girl shut her door, I turned towards the high schooler. "Sorry... Here, things are a little different."

The girl laughed bitterly. "...But, it's terrible. If only you could see her!"

...I was thinking the same thing, but…

"In this office, the director is a professional. Being possessed by a spirit isn't something we handle. I'm terribly sorry about this. She only accepts cases that she deems important."

In our case, "Gunderson Psychic Research" required that you pay a small fee. This fee would cover the expenses of the investigation. We had to do research and check out the situation in person. The fee wasn't really high, so even a high schooler's money would be enough. But it needed to be a really serious case for us to drag all the equipment there, and keep Shiro and Pidge busy with the investigation. Those two weren't stupid either.

The girl lowered her head.

I started to feel bad for her, so, "Um, I think what you said is true," I said in a small voice. "How about you give me your name and school, and I'll compile a report of your problem. We might look into it."

And then her face brightened.

"Really?"

"Yup. But I can't guarantee it."

I took out a GPR pen, and the girl eagerly took it. The sound of the pen scribbling on the paper. She wrote the information with round characters.

"Name...Ulina Borg. Occupation...High-school freshman. Address..."

Afterwards, I saw her off and watched as her figure faded away. She was definitely brave, to come all the way here to help a friend who had been acting strange recently. I carefully folded the piece of paper and placed it into my breast pocket.

~

The next day was Sunday. It was a fine, autumn day, with the wind blowing gently and a clear sky hanging above. 

I looked outside the window beside my desk. There were three papers spread out on my desk. Yesterday, we got three requests, and I think another one is coming. They were all piling up. One was a request to exorcise a ghost, another to exorcise a fox spirit, and then one about a poltergeist.

"Why is all this happening?"

I cast a doubtful look onto the papers and noted the name, "Yuasa High School." Yuasa High School was an all-girls private high school near the capital. One of my friends went there, so I knew about it. It was supposed to be a strict school…

Yesterday, we got three requests from students in that school.

...What's happening there.

It's not just one problem either.

I could hear the sound of the door opening. A client?

"Hello, Lance! How are you?" I heard a friendly voice come into the office- Hunk- he waved at me and smiled. After the first case at my school, I stayed in touch with him. We always talked on the phone and he sometimes visits me at the office, much to Pidge’s displeasure.

I prepared two cups of coffee and sat down on the sofa to speak with him. Hunk mentioned a paranormal case that he was asked to investigate— To put it simply, he wanted to talk about it with us.

"It's work-related? Really?" My voice was full of uncertainty as I spoke.

“Anyway, I'm here because I want some advice from Pidge."

While Hunk was talking, Pidge came out into the main room.

"Hey, Pidge!" Hunk raised his hand, then waved. "Today we were talking about work."

"Wow, what a surprise..."

Pidge looked pale as usual, but thankfully it was one of the days she was in a good mood. She didn’t even insult me! That's what I call progress in our relationship.

"I mean it. It sounds like a complicated case, so I thought I'd borrow your knowledge."

She took a seat beside the priest, and I placed a cup of tea in front of her.

"Actually—this a request from a friend of the restaurant I work at. She's a high school student from the city..."

"Restaurant?"

“Yes, I work part-time as a cook at a big restaurant near the office…that’s why I come here so often,” he said with a small blush. "It's a request from one of the waitresses there, Shay. She’s very sweet and cheerful...She's in her last year there, and there're some weird things happening at her school. I have a bad feeling about it."

Pidge was silent and attentive.

"That girl said that there's a desk in her room that's cursed. In the past month, the people who've sat in that desk all had accidents."

"...This sounds cliche," Pidge remarked.

"You can't say that. This situation is different because three people had the exact same accident."

"...Didn't Altea have the highest amount of accidents in history this year?"

"I thought you'd say that. But unfortunately, that's not the case. This isn't a simple traffic accident. All three of them were dragged by a train. Their arms got caught in the door. And this happened to all of them. In the past nine months, the seating arrangement changed a number of times, and three different students have sat there. One person was injured slightly, but the other two sustained large injuries. Well, fortunately, no one died. Don't you think this is strange?"

Pidge's hard gaze showed that she was deep in thought.

"And that's not all. One of the girl's teacher used an art prep room, but then a ghost showed up and the teacher was sent to the hospital. He's still vomiting blood, but no one knows why."

My voice felt stuck in my throat. "That's strange," I choked out.

"You think so? There seems to be a lot of unusual incidents happening at that school. It's not just a simple ghost story. There seems to be other accidents and illnesses going on in their school. Shay also said..."

Strange incidents...

Suddenly I remembered the piece of folded paper in my breast pocket. "Hey, Hunk. Is the school 'Yuasa High School'...?"

He looked surprised.

"What...? It is Yuasa High School. How did you know?"

Ehhh?! I hastily pulled out that paper from my pocket and showed it to Pidge and Hunk.

"Yesterday we had three requests! All from Yuasa High School!"

The priest took the piece of paper. "These requests..."

"Pidge rejected them, but I took their contact information in case you or Coran and Allura wanted to help."

"Her friend saw someone play with an Ouija Board, and now she's possessed by a fox spirit. In the second request, the girl said a ghost touched her, and now she's having liver problems. And in the third request, a poltergeist showed up in a club meeting."

"...What do we do? It's not just a coincidence…" Hunk groaned.

It's strange. For so many incidents to happen at one school. And in such a short time period too.

Pidge didn't respond. She just quietly gazed ahead.

“Are you just going to ignore this?" Hunk asked.

She appeared to be thinking. "We should contact them."

That's the way to go!

Right when I was about to use the phone, the door opened. A guest was here.

"Um..." the guest muttered. A middle-aged gentleman came into the room.

Since I was standing the closest to the door, the man handed a business card to me.

"Thance Wingert, principal of the private school: 'Yuasa High School'" read the card. "There have been a number of strange incidents happening at my school, so I was wondering if I could request an investigation."

After hearing the principal, we couldn't help but exchange looks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to clarify some things about the place where everything takes place - Altea.  
> I imagined Altea to be a country in Europe, maybe a type of island like Iceland. I don't have enough imagination to position it anywhere else, but if you want you could place it anywhere you like.
> 
> Altea has its own history and language, but we can say it was colonized by the English, so everyone speaks English. It doesn't make a lot of sense but it's a story so whatever.
> 
> I also want to clarify that the use of Pidge's real name in the last chapters and in the future ones is intentional and it can be a bit confusing, but I promise everything will be much clearer in the next cases. I promise it's not a typo or something:))
> 
> As always, kudos, suggestions and comments are very appreciated!!


	14. Chapter 14

We went to Yuasa High School on Monday. Before proceeding with the investigation, we wanted to hear the staff's and students' accounts of the incidents. Pidge, Shiro and I went inside the school.

Since Hunk also received a request from this school, he went there as well. And so "Gunderson Psychic Research" was back into action.

It was a typical school. It wasn't old, but it wasn't new either. It was pretty big. It seemed like there was an adjacent building that used to be part of the student union. But now it was old and rotting, so they were in the middle of demolishing it. I was beginning to have flashbacks from the first case...

Principal Thance was waiting for us in the main office. Then, he introduced us to a middle-aged teacher.

"This is our student advisor, Ulaz Vosloo. He helps the students. If there's anything you need, please don't hesitate to ask."

"Anyway, there have been a lot of accidents and illnesses lately," Ulaz said, "One-fifth of our staff is on leave, and this has been a hindrance to our classes. The same thing is happening with the students... In any case, the strange rumours have spread not only among students but they have also reached our teachers. Everyone seems to be losing it. —Well, it'll be better if you could hear the complaints from the affected people themselves. Since you've requested it, I have prepared a small conference room for you to use. You can use this room as your base. If you need anything else, feel free to ask me. I've informed the students and teachers about this and told them they could see you after school in this room. But I don't know how many people will come."

"Feel free to investigate the school however way you want. You can do whatever you believe to be convenient here. I give my best regards to you," Thance said.

Pidge nodded slightly. "You can leave it to us, sir."

After we left the principal's office, Ulaz guided us through the school. Then he led us to the room designated as our base." Here it is," the teacher announced. He looked back at us. His eyes rested on the tallest figure, Shiro. "Are you the leader?"

"No, no. The leader's over there." Shiro pointed at Pidge. Ulaz turned to look at the director. Then an uneasy expression appeared on his face.

"Well...I also have something to talk to you about."

Pidge calmly looked at the teacher, then nodded. "I'll listen. ...Did it happen here?"

I looked at the door. Above it was the nameplate, "Small Conference Room".

Ulaz opened the door. There was a big table inside, along with a whiteboard and a small shelf. It looked unused. (Though that's what you'd expect from a conference room). Pidge carefully scanned the room. The teacher encouraged us to enter.

"Tell me the details," she said.

The teacher looked back at us, the lines on his face reflecting his uneasiness. "...Well, the thing I've wanted to talk about was..."

Pidge nodded. "We will protect our client's privacy. You don't need to hide anything from us. By all means, please tell us the details."

Ulaz nodded. His forehead was covered in sweat. "Um... I hear knocking sounds at night."

"Does this happen in your house?"

"Yes, at first it was. It was a soft sound, but I woke up anyway even though I'm a heavy sleeper. There was a knocking sound on the windows and doors... And then when I checked it out..."

Ulaz became hesitant. Pidge silently prompted him to continue.

"There wasn't anybody. I looked through the curtains and saw a hand knocking on the door. A thin, white, feminine hand. After I saw it, the hand stopped and the sound was gone. At first, I thought I was just seeing things, but then the knocking went on every night..."

"Is it just a knocking sound?" Pidge asked as she took down notes.

"Yes, just a knocking sound. I was scared. There were times when I didn't want to go home, so I went out at night. But it's the same wherever I go. Whether it's in the bar, or at midnight, or just in the vicinity, I always hear that knocking sound. If I don't open the door or window, then it just keeps knocking until the morning. ...Recently I haven't been getting enough sleep."

No wonder. So that's why Ulaz has bags under his eyes.

Pidge nodded. "...That's what I thought. So does anyone else hear this sound?"

"Yes. My family hears it too, but they don't really care."

"I see." After muttering to herself, she continued “...We will have to investigate more."

"...Okay." The teacher nodded and left the room.

"...That was sudden. What do we do now?" Hunk asked.

Pidge shrugged and looked at her watch, "If we wait, class will end soon," she replied. "We can let the students come in and tell us about the incidents. It's almost the end of the day."

~

The first group who came to the conference room included Ulina, the girl who came to GPR earlier. Her friend had been possessed by a fox spirit. She looked nervous. Pidge told the six girls who came to sit down as she prepared the tape-recorder.

"I want to confirm the incidents that occurred here," she said. As Pidge spoke to Ulina, all the others became nervous. "As I recall, your friend has been possessed by a fox spirit. Is that right?"

"...Yes."

"Is she here today?"

"No, she has been staying home for a long time now. Her mother won't let her leave the house even though she seems to be healthy now."

Ulina looked back at her friends for confirmation, and they nodded.

"Please tell me about the situation again."

Ulina repeated the story. The group of girls murmured agreements, and we were able to get a better grasp on the story than from what we heard in the GPR office.

One day that girl just suddenly did something really strange. Her unusual actions (jumping onto a desk, running around the classroom, and then crying and laughing aloud) became worse (bad-mouthing others, proclaiming prophesies, just a lot of things that didn't make sense). In the end, she jumped into the pool on a cold day, and then she swallowed sand, pebbles, and chalk.

"Did she hurt anyone?" Pidge asked.

"No, she didn't."

"I see. —You said she was possessed by a fox spirit. Why do you think so?"

"That's because..." Ulina looked back at her friends. 

"That's because she said so herself," one of the girls said.

"Yeah," another girl agreed.

Pidge lightly tapped the desk with her finger. "Well, at the time we thought nothing of it. When someone's in that state, wouldn't you think she's sick? Wouldn't it be a good idea to take her to a neurologist?"

The group of girls started to whisper to each other. Eventually, it was Ulina who answered. "It's because...she said, 'I am Oinari's servant, the white fox'. And she started acting strangely after we played with an Ouija Board last month."

"...I see. It sounds quite simple. Did you have fun with it?"

"Yes." Ulina nodded.

"Nothing else was strange ... but, as we were leaving, she said something weird...She told us she felt like she was possessed. She complained that her shoulder felt heavy."

"That's right. She started acting strange the very next day." one of the girls nodded.

The girls started to talk amongst themselves again.

"...Okay. Where did you play with the board?"

"In our classroom. The first floor, room three."

Pidge looked up at the rough map of the school, which was on the board. She was clearly contemplating something. "Please write down your friend's name and contact number. I will investigate this thoroughly."

After Ulina left, the next group, which included Ragna Tranum, a girl who came after Ulina at the office, entered the classroom. A student who looked slightly younger than me, and a student who looked older than me, came in as well.

"Your request regards a...poltergeist in a classroom," Pidge stated.

"Yes...erm, about that." Ragna nodded nervously. "For the track and field team, strange things happen in the dressing room. Lockers are toppled over, and equipment gets scattered all over the floor...Then our equipment stopped working too."

"Did you not think that someone was trying to sabotage the team?"

"We thought so, at first."

"Of course, we thought someone was just up to mischief. We changed the key to the locker room. But there was nothing wrong with the key. One night, we even stayed by the locker room to catch the culprit, but no one came."

"I see. Yes, that is strange."

The other student nodded in agreement.

"But when we looked away for a moment, the shot puts, which should have been in boxes, were lined up perfectly beside each other on the floor."

"...I see." Pidge nodded slightly.

Well, that's definitely a poltergeist. I wonder if it rearranged those mechanical parts. I guess we'll find out.

"Are poltergeists behind all these things?"

"I don't know..."

~

We questioned a lot of students after that, everyone telling us about accidents and unusual phenomena. The last group to come was Shay’s - One of the seats in her class was cursed. The last person who sat there was dragged by a train.

Hunk shook hands with her, a crooked smile plastered on his face.

"You really came—" she said in adoration.

"Seems like it."

Then Hunk introduced us. "That little girl over here is the president of "Gunderson Psychic Research", Pidge Gunderson. And the friendly-looking guy over there is her assistant, Lance."

"Nice to meet you." Shay smiled.

"Same here." I shook her hand eagerly.

"I want to hear the entire story."

Hunk turned around to look at Pidge, who continued to speak. "Is the person involved in that accident here today?"

I looked at the group of eight in front of us.

"She's here."

Shay indicated a girl in the back.

"I'm the second person to get in an accident, and...I wanted to say the story back then, but," the girl hesitated for a moment. "It happened when I tried to get off the train. Well, I was getting out of the train, right? As I was leaving the train, someone tugged my arm. It was really forceful. My arm got stuck in the door, and the train started moving, so I ran to keep up with it. There was nothing else I could do... Anyway, I fell and was dragged along the platform. This went on for five meters before the train stopped."

Her shoulder was dislocated, and her leg broke. She removed her cast last week.

"Did anyone see you get dragged by the train?"

Everyone turned to look at the girl.

"There weren't many passengers on the train that day. No one was near the door when my arm got stuck."

Pidge scribbled down some notes. "What time was it?"

She reported the time the incident happened, as well as the situation of the other victims. After answering the questions, Pidge went on: "Do you know why these accidents happen to people who sit in that desk?"

The girls exchanged doubtful looks.

"We don't know...?" They whispered to each other.

"...I see. Thank you." She shut her notebook with a slam, then turned to Shay "I want to see the desk."

"Ah, well, I'll show it to you."

The girls brought us to Shay’s classroom. It was room 10. The classroom was on the second floor in the south wing of the school. The cursed desk was near the window.

"Over there."

Pidge walked over to the desk. As she touched the desk, her eyes narrowed. "Is anyone sitting here now?"

Shay shook her head. "Nope. The last person who sat there is in the hospital now. Everyone is scared."

"Was the desk ever moved?"

"No, it has always been over there."

Pidge was contemplating. After a while, she looked satisfied and left the desk. "I heard that your teacher was behaving strangely."

Shay nodded again. "That's right. He said he saw a ghost in class, so now he's not coming to school. He wasn't the type to believe in them either. But now he's in the hospital. They say that he still sees ghosts in his hospital room and that he's suffering from Neurosis."

"Okay... Thank you." Pidge placed her hand on her chin. This was an expression she often showed when she was thinking.

...There were so many things going on there. What were we supposed to do?

~

After we finished the inquiries, I was able to make tea for everyone. Principal Thance told us we could use his set of tea. And that's why I was there at that moment, making tea.

"Isn't this really bad?" I asked.

Hunk nodded, a look of concern on his face.

"Look at the sheer amount of incidents that occur here."

I looked at the notes that Pidge took.

"...There's no way this is happening. Just thinking of exorcising them all by myself makes me dizzy. Geez." Hunk let out an exaggerated sigh and then looked at Pidge. “Pidge, can you think of a one-time solution of exorcising all the evil spirits here?"

"Blow up the school and all the people involved," she murmured in an irritated tone.

"Oh, that does work. But then we'd have to make this school off-limits for a long time afterwards. Though that's definitely a way to solve this problem in one shot."

Hey you—

"Well, I guess. ...We'll have to divide the exorcisms up between everyone. But don't you think that this could all be a prank made by someone?" Hunk remarked as he faced Pidge.

"Maybe..."

"Huh?" I blurted out.

Hunk frowned. "You... I thought you'd know. There's no doubt, this will be difficult. Certainly, there're a large number of incidents, but none of them is serious."

Pidge looked doubtful.

"Don't you think that this is an abnormal amount?"

"...That, well..."

Pidge's eyes wandered around the room. "If none of the accidents are fabricated, then there must be a reason behind them," she stated.

...That's right. Footsteps and knocking doors, all of the incidents are strange. Furthermore, for all this to happen in one school is even odder.

"I understand what you mean... But, what do we do? The client did request an investigation, so how about we first try to find the cause behind all this?"

After hearing Hunk, Pidge's facial expression changed several times. She seemed to have mixed feelings about the case. "...I'm not so sure of the implications here. However, this doesn't look good. Reinforcements will be necessary."

"Are you calling Keith too?" Hunk asked.

In an instant, Pidge's expression became incomprehensible. It was the kind of face you'd make when you put something in your mouth, thinking it'll be sweet, yet it turns out to be sour. That kind of face.

"Why do you hate Keith?" I suddenly asked. She was strangely quiet when the subject changed to Keith.

“I don’t hate him…”

"Depending on the situation, it might be good to get advice, y'know?" a huge grin spread across Hunk’s face.

"I can't see myself living a life off of other people's advice, can you?" Pidge retorted.

What an over-confident little brat!


	15. Chapter 15

The next day, all of us were back at Yuasa High School.

Pidge entered our small conference room and started to explain the circumstances to everyone else: Keith, Coran and Allura. So far, our tasks seemed simple. "Anyway, there have been large number of incidents, so we can't spend much time on every one of them. Just try to exorcise as many as possible, and if that's ineffective, we'll think of another plan."

"Hunk and Coran, go here, okay?"

Pidge passed the memo regarding the cursed desk victim's hospitalization to them.

"If a spirit is there, do you want us to exorcise it?"

Pidge nodded to Coran in response, "And now, Keith. Please take a look around the school. For the time being, perform an exorcism in the art preparation room. Afterwards, do the same thing for the seat that's causing accidents and for the locker room in the track and field team. Allura, please accompany him. If you encounter any spirits, please exorcise them."

There were some receivers lined up on the table. "Please take one. Here, Lance will be able to receive information. As long as you are on school grounds, the signal will get through."

We will use the night vision camera as well as the thermograph. The psychics will have to rely on their sixth sense and receivers for ghost hunting.

"Got it," Allura nodded reluctantly.

"What about you? What will you do, Pidge?" I asked.

"I will continue to investigate with Shiro."

"I see," I said. "Good luck. I hope things go well."

Followed by a completely sarcastic tone, "Don't get your hopes up."

...So am I the only one not doing anything? Oh, well—that's just the way things are, I guess. Those were some clearly confident orders. Exactly what a presumptuous, narcissistic person would say.

"Keith, let's go!" Allura declared. The medium was violently dragged out of the room. This acted as a cue for the rest of the members to stand up and leave.

I sat down in front of the large receiver... I could only hope this case would run smoothly.

~

I organized a large number of notes regarding the incidents, their locations, and what happened according to the witnesses. I quickly started on my tedious task and ordered them into a big folder. I didn't have psychic powers, so of course, things would turn out this way. Still, I couldn't help but feel that the everyday routine was a chore. Yeah, even once would have been good; To perform an exorcism, just once...

...Maybe that would make Pidge take a good look at me—No, that could never happen, right? The social difference between a CEO and a part-time worker is too great. It was certainly something to think about. Alone, I was grumnling to myself when all of a sudden,

The conference room door opened. Shocked, I shot up from my seat. Shay looked even more surprised than me.

"...You surprised me..." I uttered.

"Same here. ...I didn't think that someone would be here. Where's Hunk?"

“Hunk left to do some exorcisms. Would you like to sit down?"

"Sure." Giggling, Shay energetically entered the room and sat down with a pat. What a friendly person.

"Here's some tea. How's class?" I asked.

"Thanks. ...We have to teach ourselves the material because our teacher is in the hospital…Since a lot of our teachers have been hospitalized, everything is self-taught. I feel grateful...Lance, I was wondering...why are so many incidents happening here?"

I talked about the circumstances of the case as I arranged the notes. Shay also helped out.

"Well, life is tough, isn't it?"

"Guess so."

She crossed her arms. "What's wrong with this school...? Curses, ghosts, and psychic powers. If a UFO comes along..."

...Eh?

"Shay, what did you say just now?"

“It's all because of this huge assembly gathering on psychic powers. The existence of curses, ghosts, and psychic abilities..."

"Stop! Who's this person with psychic powers?"

"Oh, you didn't hear about it? It's Acxa Chiaki," Shay tilted her head. "In this school, there's a girl in the 11th grade. She has psychic powers."

"What?"

"Lately, there have been these TV programs. Programs about spoon bending...I think it immediately started right after summer vacation. It became really popular overnight. A lot of people went and saw her do it. I went and saw it too. Anyhow, the craze soon died down," Shay chuckled. "Bending the spoon by the neck. It's amazing. I was really impressed by it, but some people believed it was fake. And then, for a while, it became a hot topic. The school became divided up into believers and non-believers. Spoon bending was popular for a moment, but..."

"But what?"

"Things became serious. Even the teachers were dragged into the strangeness. Everyone wanted to put an end to this and find out whether or not it is fake, so Acxa was asked to go on stage in a morning assembly."

"...And that's when things got worse."

"Then Acxa’s friend, Ezor, lost her temper. Her friend became an overwhelming figure when that happened. And then the guidance counsellor, Ulaz, asked Acxa to bend a key in order to prove her powers."

"Did everyone see it?"

"Yes. In the assembly, in front of the entire school. And then, well, the teachers and Ezor attacked Acxa. Saying stuff like 'psychic powers don't exist, you're trying to escape reality, this is fake, how dreadful.' Seriously."

It was a very likely reaction.

"And now Ezor refuses to go to school. What's more, Acxa became furious. She said _'I'll curse you to death'_ to the teachers. It became hectic."

Wow. This was a serious matter.

"And Ulaz lectured specifically on this matter in the school assembly, saying there are no such things as psychic powers or ghosts. He and his long speech."

"Poor him."

"I feel bad for him too. But, since then, strange things have been happening, and people have been talking. It's only gossip, but there has been some talk that it's because of Acxa’s curse."

"How unlucky..."

What was happening here? Psychic abilities and curses and rumours... I took the mike, "Pidge, Pidge. Can you hear me?" While calling her, I heard some static, as well as some other common sounds.

"What?"

"Come back. You see, I found some useful information."

There was some static in the background.

"Come back now," I repeated.

~

After Pidge listened to Shay's explanation, she contemplated.

"...I don't know the details about it, but..." Shay replied.

"How are those two now?" she asked.

"Well, I don't know, but Ezor rarely comes to school. Sometimes Acxa would be invited to do new things, but lately, that hasn't been happening at all. After being made fun of in the morning assembly, Acxa rarely talks now. The thing is, everyone wants to see what tricks she used. Though this is what you'd expect."

"I see..."

"If I remember correctly, Acxa and Ezor were both in the Biology Club. Acxa might still be in school. She should be in the room where the Biology club was in, the Bio-preparation room."

"Thank you. We'll go there and take a look. —Lance, come on."

"Okay..."

Regarding work, Pidge took her job seriously, which is why she was such an expert. After a crude explanation on using the equipment, she let Shay monitor the machines. She took me along with her, and I left the conference room behind me. The Biology preparation room was lined up with some other science courses. It was in the class right beside the lab room. As we approached the door, we heard voices coming from inside. The moment Pidge knocked, the voices came to a halt.

"Yes?" A woman's voice.

Pidge opened the door, "Excuse me for intruding, but would Acxa Chiaki be here?"

There were some desks and shelves inside, along with a schoolgirl and a female teacher. After hearing the name 'Acxa', the pair's expressions changed immediately. "What business do you have here?" asked the teacher looking at Pidge. She was a young schoolteacher with a gentle voice. She listened with business-like attention to Pidge.

"I want to speak with Miss Acxa. —Are you Acxa?" she asked, glaring at the student.

"...Now what?" The hostility towards Pidge ringed clearly in her words.

"The principal had called us in. I'm Pidge Gunderson from 'Gunderson Psychic Research' and this is Lance Mcclain, my assistant"

Acxa turned her head to face us. She wore an expression of disinterest. The teacher looked slightly embarrassed.

"...Please take a seat. I'm Honerva Haggar, the Biology teacher."

"Haggar...It's quite an unusual name," Pidge commented.

The teacher smiled gently in response. "Since it's about Acxa... That must mean you want to hear about the incident in September."

"Yes. I would like to ask her about the circumstances."

"I don't want to." Acxa’s face was turned away from us. "It has nothing to do with me. Leave me alone."

"But, you should still talk to them, so that they don't misunderstand," the teacher coaxed.

The girl looked outside the window, "I don't want to. They'll just call me a liar."

Honerva walked over to Acxa, "They're paranormal researchers. The CEO will not dismiss what you have to say."

"...Well? What do you want to ask about?" she finally said.

"I heard that you're connected to the strange incidents happening in the school from a student here. You also had an argument with your friend, Ezor."

"I have nothing to do with the incidents happening in the school. Lately, she hasn't been coming to school. She shuts herself in her room and refuses to go out or even answer the phone. I didn't make her do that, because I didn't even meet with her this month."

Pidge nodded slightly, "Ezor heard about the mysterious power you had and made an announcement to the entire school in the morning gathering."

"...That's right..."

"Can you bend spoons?"

Upon hearing Pidge's voice, she gave her a stern stare, "Yes, I can. You probably don't believe it, and you must think I'm being selfish." A biting, suppressed smile spread onto Acxa's features. "After all...You don't believe in psychic powers anyway, right?" she pressed.

"Why wouldn't I? Even I can bend a spoon."

Eh?

Honerva, I and even Acxa were shocked as we stared at Pidge.

"You can?" the girl asked.

"I can. There are no paranormal researchers that do not believe in PK."

"—Can you do it easily?"

"...Yes..."

And then without any warning, the girl immediately said, "Show me."

Pidge accepted the spoon from the girl. There was a complicated look on her face. She seemed to be hesitating.

"Can you do it? Can you really?"

If Pidge couldn't do it, then Acxa would never trust us. And then we wouldn't be able to hear the entire story. However, if she had already changed into that kind of person, she wouldn't be able to trust anyone else.

Pidge's glance fell toward the spoon. She looked at it, then at Acxa. She muttered something. As the tip of her finger touched the spoon, without any effort, the spoon's neck became bent and fell down. Clink! The sound of the metal echoed throughout the room.

We quietly took in a breath.

Then she handed the headless spoon, which was now a mere stick, to Acxa. She timidly accepted the object.

"Amazing..."

"Do you believe me now?"

"...Yes."

Acxa tightly grasped the spoon handle. "It all started when I saw this TV program in the Summer," she said. "I just happened to see this late-night program about spoon bending. I ended up thinking about it afterwards, and I tried to bend one by myself." The girl picked up the fallen head of the spoon and joined it to the handle. "I don't have anything amazing to show you though, not at my level."

Shrugging her shoulders, she tossed the broken spoon onto Honerva’s desk.

"The next day, Ezor bought spoons and called lots of people. Then I bent the spoon, though I couldn't do it as easily as you. It took me a long time to bend it in one shot."

Acxa stopped talking to Pidge. Honerva then continued for her.

"Back in the day, a psychic named Uri Geller appeared in a broadcasting. Some of the viewers began to bend spoons, and that's when this whole commotion about psychic powers started. Those who discovered their psychic powers back then were called 'Gellerini'."

"You know this very well," Pidge whispered and the teacher smiled. Then she directed her question to Acxa. "Can you still bend it?"

The girl’s expression seemed constrained. Pidge’s words appeared to send her a challenge. "Of course I can!" she shouted as she grabbed another spoon. Her right hand grasped the spoon in front of her face, as her left hand reached out for the spoon's neck.

Pidge was silent while the girl stared intently at the spoon. The tip of her finger touched the spoon. However, her power seemed to concentrate on her shoulders. Focusing her mind and feelings, she stooped forward. Her body was almost completely bent forward into the chair.

"Don't do that," Pidge gripped Acxa's shoulder.

The girl shot her an unhappy look. Her face was pale.

"...What?"

"I know what you're doing. When you do that, you're doing the same thing some of the Gellerini did."

...What things?

Acxa’s face was white as Honerva turned around.

"...Sorry. But this child isn't lying. It's just, sometimes she can't bend it," she explained.

...Despite her saying that, it was not what we had seen.

"...Um," I timidly cut into their conversation.

Pidge slowly turned around, "That was a trick. While your body was bent, you tried to bend the spoon with the chair. Placing it into your shadow, you'd bend it—against the hard edge of the chair." Pidge’s eyes were serious as she spoke. "The majority of the Gellerini nearly lost all their psychic powers in a short amount of time. As a result, they had to resort to tricks in order to cover up the loss of their powers. Some of the kids were caught and labelled as impostors. Right then, it looked like you used one of the typical tricks that the Gellerini used."

"But I really can bend it!" Acxa shouted.

"If you are caught using that kind of trick, you will lose your credibility. Got it?"

"...Yes."

"The Gellerini's powers were terribly unstable. Every paranormal researcher knows this fact. If you can't do it, then just say you can't do it. Don't pay any attention to those people who do not believe because they never believed in psychic powers from the beginning."

"I understand." Acxa looked small.

"I'm the one who taught her that," Honerva placed a hand by her mouth as she apologized. "Some teachers put her in situations where she had to bend spoons to prove her powers. Acxa’s powers are unstable...Everybody's suspicion grew stronger, and they wanted to make her cower."

Pidge nodded, "You are a very understanding teacher."

Honerva didn't answer but smiled slightly instead.

Acxa spoke in a low voice, "...Lately, I haven't been able to bend spoons."

"That's possible."

"I talked to Miss Haggar, and she taught me that trick. Even if I can do it, I only bend it slightly, so I use that method instead."

"...I see."

"...Ezor constantly taunted me. I learned how to concentrate on bending spoons from Miss Haggar, and I practised it. So then I tried to use that method hastily, but I can't do it at all."

"What about Mister Ulaz? Did he think you could really do it?"

"...Mmm, he kept finding fault in me. He did that countless times. And then...in September, I was called to the front of the school in the morning assembly— The guidance counsellor, Mister Ulaz, came and went on and on about how psychic powers is nonsense, and then he complained about me being an idiot. At that time, Ezor got angry because I could do it, and she told me off."

"You bent the teacher's key..."

"Yes. It was Mister Ulaz's car key. And that's just the beginning. But, I opposed him in front of everyone, y'know? Since then, the teacher's criticism was relentless... I became quiet, and coming to school has been hard with all the gossip. But Miss Haggar has been nice to me despite all the criticism she has to face. Just what is the Biology Club doing, and other stuff like that. The members of the club have been sending me glares, and afterwards, a lot of them left the club. I...made them quit the club. That's why I've been idle lately; I just can't help but think about this."

After Pidge listened to what Acxa said "I see. Did you also say: _'I'll curse you to death'_?

"After he said all those mean things to me, I flew into a rage. I couldn't help but get angry."

"So you were just saying it?"

"Yes...something like cursing him to death would be hard to do."

"Yes, that's right…" Pidge agreed in a dull voice.

~

When Pidge and I returned to the conference room, we heard lively voices from inside. Everyone had returned.

"Did they just come back from exorcising?" I asked casually.

"Lance."

"What?"

"I have a favour to ask of you."

...F-f-f-f-f-favour?! Did Pidge want a favour from meeeee?! I was already blushing furiously. "...P-please go on."

"About me bending the spoon earlier."

"Yeah?"

"Keep it a secret from everybody."

"Why? It was amazing!" It was more than amazing. Without any effort, she just broke that spoon with her finger!

"Please. Especially from Shiro."

...Wha. O-okay. But why? I really wanted to ask her about the details, but she looked truly worried, so I decided to let the matter drop.

"Of course," I assured her.

It's not bad to have the upper hand for once. I'm grateful, Pidge. Light-headed, I smiled slightly, while she opened the door to the conference room. For a moment, she looked like her real age. But just as quickly, the expression reverted back to her beautiful, emotionless state.

Inside, Allura and Keith were arguing about something.

"What's the problem?" she asked as Allura looked the other way.

"Keith said nothing was there," she grumbled as she faced us. Then they started shouting at each other again, talking about a spear and an accident.

Suddenly, Pidge's calm voice boomed like thunder, "Can you be more specific?"

Everyone stopped in their tracks in silence. Looking worried, Hunk turned to Coran for help.

"When we were coming back from outside, we opened the door and looked into the track and field team room and saw a spear flying towards us. Of course, no one else was in the room," Coran explained.

...It was that dangerous... Moreover, was the bandage a reason to aim at their heads? Just thinking about it made me shiver.

Pidge replied in a hard voice, "And? Did you eventually get some exorcisms done?"

Allura decided to be mean. "...Keith said that he has not seen even one ghost around the school..."

The girl looked back at the medium. "...Is that true?"

"Yes," Keith looked up and nodded. His face was brimming with confidence.

"...That can't be..." I whispered

"But there aren't any. I thoroughly looked all around the school, and there were also no spirits in other places."

Coran interjected, "You'd expect it to be spirits here, right? But there aren't any at all. It's natural to think that since this is where the curse is taking place. And because four accidents have already occurred, more will continue."

"Then they're deceiving us," Keith stated.

"The whole school?! Stop joking."

"It's a fact."

The deathly silent Keith turned the other way. Pidge looked at him and let out a sigh.

...Could that be it? Yeesh. Could I just believe that?

Hunk looked a bit apologetic, "But that girl who was possessed can't be faking it. The exorcisms weren't effective. Coran and I alternated our exorcisms numerous times, but in the end, we had to struggle to do it, and they came back anyway."

"I see..."

Pidge appeared to be deep in thought.

"These extremely strong spirits are very lucky now. Tomorrow, if that girl calms down, you can ask her questions again."

"No, it's okay," she dismissed the idea with a wave of her hand. "Go see the girl at the hospital."

Coran looked confused. "The hospital... You don't mean the one in the neurology section?"

Followed by Pidge’s emotionless voice, "What seems to be an evil spirit could just be a neurotic disease. In actuality, when consulting a neurologist, there would be many symptoms and different methods to deal with them. Of course, we can't just deny the possibility of possession. If the girl so far as goes to a temple, then the counsellor would be concerned, right? One would assume the possession is responsible for a hysterical personality."

"Ah..."

...Her difficult words always left me in a state of confusion. Allura also looked a bit nonplussed.

"Sometimes a hysteria fit will look as if the victim is possessed by a spirit. This could be the case with her, right?" Coran replied.

"So you think it was a hysteria fit? It could be the cause..." she nodded.

"That could be the reason. Then the entire thing would be a simple misunderstanding."

"Huh...?"

Pidge turned towards the priestess and me.

"'Hysteria' is a medical term. It could be an explanation. The girl, however, was relaxed and not serious at all. So, as a matter of fact, it's the exact opposite. 'Hysteria' is a term used in nerve medicine. Someone with hysteria would try to suppress their extreme desires, instead of carrying them out. Apart from an explosion, I can't think of a way to place a limit on all these strange occurrences."

...My poor brain was not excited.

"So what are you trying to say?" Allura asked Pidge. "Unless she's possessed by a spirit, she has hysteria?"

"I fear that's the case. If she gets visitors while she's in the hospital, then things would be clear."

"Then what about the others? What about the hand coming out of the desk and the knocking sounds? Are all those due to sicknesses too?"

Coran looked back at Keith, who had a look of satisfaction on his face.

"...So there are no ghosts here."

Pidge shrugged, "If I were a neurologist, I'd conclude that there is a mass breakout of hysteria in this school..." She muttered something, and then glanced down at her feet.

"You can't think anymore?" asked the monk.

"Even though things may appear this way, as a parapsychologist this is my conviction," She whispered.

~

"What a troublesome case..." Pidge said as she looked out the window.

Hunk nodded in agreement. 

"Really?" Coran asked in a persistently carefree manner.

Pidge shot him a disdainful stare, "Out of all the complaints we’ve received, how many do you think actually happened?"

"Well, at a glance there seem to be some misunderstandings," the monk responded.

"Strange incidents continue to occur in this school. No one feels comfortable anymore, and everyone feels like prisoners," Hunk said. "Since everyone feels so uneasy and frightened, they might experience hallucinations. This could be the reason why the girl possessed by a fox spirit became such a wreck. I know this sounds vague, but something similar to a curse must be causing this―At least, that’s what I think. If this situation continues, the uneasiness will increase, and people will believe the school is haunted or that there’s a curse. And then the clumsier people may panic."

"Right," Pidge agreed. "We can’t determine whether or not these incidents are due to spiritual phenomena because of all the possible exceptions and the sheer amount of incidents that have occurred. Moreover...even if that’s true, the amount is still abnormal. There must be a reason behind all this despite the fact that incidents only occur to those related to the school. Still, I haven’t the slightest idea what those reasons could be..."

Everyone seemed deep in thought.

"Now the only one we can rely on is Keith..." Pidge muttered indifferently.

Keith raised an eyebrow before responding, "...There are no spirits in this school."

"...So that’s your conclusion. Have we reached a dead-end this soon?"

"Maybe Keith is right?" asked Allura hesitantly.

Keith turned towards her, "Allura is undoubtedly correct." Then he turned toward the boss. "You believe me, right?"

And then I instinctively replied, "Well that’s obvious, isn’t it?" Everyone’s gaze fell onto me. Especially Keith’s sharp one. He was infuriating me on purpose. He was making me lose it. "There are spirits here. It’s just that Keith can’t sense them," I stated.

He began to laugh, "Your spiritual ability is non-existent."

"But, they do exist here. I can feel it in the atmosphere."

Ahh, some words can be bought.

"Such talk is meaningless," He shouted as Allura raised her voice.

"I agree with Lance."

...Allura?

"I think so too," came another voice.

Keith scowled at us, "There aren’t any here. I believe I am correct."

"Really? If there were ghosts here, what would you do?" asked Allura.

"In one way or another, everything will be okay," the medium replied.

"So, from now on, you’ll stop helping Pidge with her cases, right?" the priestess challenged.

...What are you talking about? We forgot about our situation and just stared at her with blank looks on our faces.

There was a faint smile on Keith’s face, "Allura, why must you speak so roughly?"

"There’s a problem with this team."

...A problem with the team? You mean from the very beginning?

I looked at Pidge, who was clearly in a bad mood. She didn’t like all the shouting.

"I know what Keith is saying, and I know what Lance is saying too. But we can’t tell whose judgment is correct as of now, so this argument is pointless. This case is meaningless," she stated ruthlessly...This was how Pidge acted when she got angry. If anything, this was quite natural for her.

"Hunk, let’s get back to work! We should quickly exorcise the spirits." Allura declared.

"Huh...? That..."

"Well! Let’s go!". They left the room in a hurry.

Coran scratched his head. "...I’ll get back to work too..."

He went out the door. Keith spoke to Pidge and proceeded to shoot me a glance before walking out. Now, the only ones left behind were a very confused Shay, me, a bored Pidge, and a busy Shiro.

Pidge was casually looking out the window, her bitter expression still in place. This was a strange case, even for her.

"...If only," she murmured.

"Eh?"

When no reply came, I shook my head.

"If only...a psychic with abilities that we can trust were here...Shiro, let’s get back to work as well."

"Okay."

They also left the room.

Stiff and dazed, Shay sighed. "Is it always like that?"

"...Yeah."

"You constantly undergo hardships."

"You think so?" I asked.

Shay gently patted my head, comforting me for the moment.


	16. Chapter 16

It was raining after class. We were in the middle of a tea break during a late meeting in the conference room. During the meeting, Pidge made a fuss about being an idiot and not telling everyone about Acxa's case. I heard her, but I wasn't really listening. Instead, I had looked out of the window and watched the rain fall. The monotonous rain made me feel quite gloomy. ―I thought about that, knowing today was one unlucky day. There were two possibilities. The first possibility was that someone (a criminal) was responsible for this. With the exception of divine intervention, I thought it could just be that everyone was having a hard time.

The rain softly came down like were strings of silver. The clouds darkened the sky, which created a depressing mood.

And then the next thing I knew, I was in an amusement park.

Why was I in an amusement park?

...Of course, this was a dream.

It was a small park. I was filled with excitement.

I realized this place looked familiar. It looked just like the amusement park my mom had once taken me to. I was standing in front of a mirror house. In the middle was a glass mirror, and around it was a maze. That was right, when I was young, I would cry in that mirror house. I used to see my reflection in the mirrors, and it would be so scary I'd start crying.

What was with this huge maze anyway?

It was getting darker and darker. Ah, that's why. This maze darkened as time passed. While thinking about this, I could no longer see my feet. The only available light was the light reflected by the mirror.

What was I supposed to do? There was no exit. As I feared, he didn't come!

I started to run. My reflection also ran. Hundreds of me turned and ran, but in the midst of all, only one shadow wasn't moving. I aimed at it. That must have been the clue to getting out of this maze. I rushed towards the unmoving shadow.

...Pidge.

In the darkness, Pidge was there, completely clothed in black. Only her hands and face were pale as moonlight.

"It's impossible to get out," I told her.

Without saying anything, she pointed at something to her side. Her pale fingers left a white trail in the darkness.

I could see the tip of her finger.

That's...the school. The inside of the school was inversed black and white, like a photographic negative. The wall was black, while the blackboard was white. The wall and floor had a white outline, but other than that they were transparent. It was the school's shadow. And that was an unripe will-o-wisp. There were pale, clear will-o-wisps scattered throughout the entire school. In the darkness, I stared at them fixedly, placing all my attention on them.

"What's...that?" I asked Pidge as I looked up at her.

She answered in a whisper, "You'll understand."

...I'll understand? So that was it. Of course, I got it, that will-o-wisp had evil intentions. Furthermore, it was not of this world. I shivered.

There were countless will-o-wisps. All of them were evil. I couldn't help but watch them. They exhibited a cold colour. Gradually the scene became blurry and normal colours came into place again. I could clearly see a wall.

"...?"

A wall. A very pale green wall. I was surrounded by a strange barrier on all sides.

"Lance!"

What?!

I lifted my head and saw Pidge. There was a harsh expression on her face. "Just now, you were asleep, weren't you?"

Eh? Asleep? ...Of course.

Huh?!

I looked around to see everyone's cold eyes piercing at me. "I'm sorry. I did fall asleep."

A...awkward.

"You were completely sound asleep with your eyes open."

"Sorry..."

Pidge looked at me with cold eyes, "Are you my assistant? Or are you a hindrance?"

...W-why did she feel the need to insult me every time?

"Hold on a moment, why are you being so mean! I was sleepy so I couldn't help it. I didn't sleep well because I kept thinking about this case. It's not like I fell asleep while driving!"

She sent me another icy stare, "You've become aggressive, haven't you?"

"It's a perfectly natural response! Congressmen that bear the burden of the fate of an entire country have to sleep. Even people who have to complete difficult tasks that are as smart as the president have to sleep. So there's nothing bad about a mere, low-class person like me being asleep."

"...Wonderful, you've distorted my words."

"Oh dear, you've made the director upset," Allura taunted.

"I'm fine," Pidge replied.

...Really. Ah—how refreshing. Despite having a sharp tongue, she was very capable. On top of that, she was also quite cute! If only she had a good personality, it would be too good to be true, and she'd be the one suffering an early death, wouldn't she!

Pidge's gaze fell onto my direction, and soon everyone else's did too.

"Let's forget about this foolishness," she finally said. "We must return to the topic at hand."

So sleeping is just foolishness? I'd like to see you say that while marching to the National Diet.

She lightly tapped the table with her finger. "I don't know whether or not Acxa's situation is related to this case..."

Allura leaned towards her, "Well, how much faith do you place on that child?"

"I believe her."

"Well, I think she's lying. Please, as if she can actually bend spoons."

“Spoon bending isn't just a magic trick..." I whispered.

Hunk nodded. "Right! Uri Geller started spoon bending. He is the best psychic of the century...his supernatural powers were shown to the public. He had PK, clairvoyance, and prediction abilities similar to that of a prophet. He made the impossible possible. Geller was everywhere when it came to spoon bending. All the children saw him do it too."

"Um, you mean the Gellerini?

"Yes, that's right. But the Gellerini had unstable powers. When they lost their powers, they would rely on magic tricks. Some of them were exposed as cheaters.

"I see."

"Because of that, some people began to doubt Geller's ability."

"They doubted Uri Geller?"

"Yeah. At that time, America's Society of Parapsychology had publicly announced that Uri Geller was a fake. That incident left such a strong impression on people that everyone now believes spoon bending is fake," Hunk nodded.

"But did you think Uri Geller's powers were real?"

He put on a tired smile. "Not really... It's just, he was too showy. At any rate, they were just illusions that garnered more attention than they deserved."

"Illusion?"

"Um...basically it's accomplished by using lots of magic tricks. Like making airplanes and trucks disappear."

"Ah, I get it now."

Listening in, Coran leaned towards us, "I think Geller was a fake too."

"Why?" I asked.

"Hmm. Psychic ability...if it's the ability to sense hidden things, hearing noises, or seeing things, then that's the ability to sense things that shouldn't be there. Geller was well-received at first, but he was later in a bind. He could do everything, but there was still something strange about him," the monk admitted.

"Right," Hunk nodded. "There are two types of psychic abilities, ESP and PK. ESP is extrasensory perception, a special ability in which one can perceive things that normal people cannot. There are two branches of ESP: clairvoyance and telepathy."

"I see."

"PK stands for psychokinesis. It's an ability that normal people do not have. Basically, it's the power to move objects with your mind... Generally, psychics fall into one of these classifications: PK or ESP. Occasionally someone will be a mix of each, but most people will fall into just one of those categories."

Coran nodded. "Edgar Cayce Jean Dickson is an amazing clairvoyant, but I've never heard of him bending a spoon before. Likewise, Nina Kulagina has strong PK powers, but I've never heard of her having ESP. Only Kulagina and Holt have that kind of PK power."

"That's right," Hunk agreed. "But for Uri Geller, assuming his PK was the best, was his ESP also the best too? If that's the case, then that means his power was unrestricted. However, I still think he was a fake."

Allura leaned forward, "I've always wondered about that. Why does the spoon bend? If the metal bends, then what kind of spoon is it? And if PK can bend the spoon, then is it even a spoon? Isn't that strange?"

"—So you're basically saying that PK is just a magic trick?" I wondered aloud.

"No, that's different," Coran asserted. "There are three types of PK: PK-MT, PK-ST, and PK-LT."

...Wow, this is too much information.

"Spoon bending would fall under the PK-ST category. It's the ability to influence stationary objects. There are a lot of misunderstandings regarding this ability. There have been many reports of frauds that claim to have this. Actually, PK-MT is considered the best ability out of all of them. This is the ability to influence moving objects, such as changing the eyes of a die as it's rolling. If you're thinking about getting a two, then you really will get a two."

"Heh..."

"Generally, people with psychic abilities, like Geller, would act as magicians. In that case, he would be able to perform magic without having to put up with others' complaints. But even magicians have limits. Otherwise, people would get suspicious, right? If I remember correctly, Meyer was also a magician, similar to Rolfe- but he constantly got into conflicts and fights with others. Despite this, this Rolfe magician was eventually backed up by Meyer. In other words, Meyer had confirmed his powers."

"Oh—"

"And there was also Nina Kulagina. She was very strong! She had both PK-ST and PK-LT. PK-LT is the ability to influence living organisms, such as making them move. Such actions were often a cinch for her. She could cure illnesses with just physical contact. She stopped a frog's heart and even a human heart."

"She could stop hearts—?!"

"Yes. During the experiment, she aroused the curiosity of researchers. If she could stop a frog's heart, then she might have been able to stop a human's heart. He got a volunteer for the experiment, and eventually the volunteer's heart was in imminent danger of stopping. The doctor witnessing this was able to save him though."

Oh my god—

"...Also, another very important figure in PK is England's, Kathrine Holt. She also has PK-ST and is a psychometrist. Normally, PK is used to move matchboxes, spoons, or other little objects. But there's a big gap of power between this girl and the others. Dr Holt is more of a serious researcher than a PK-user, and as such, she hasn't been publicized much. If I remember correctly, last year there was a video that not many saw of her doing an experiment. In the experiment, she threw a 50-kg block of aluminium into a wall without touching it!"

"Wow."

"But PK is just limited that way. Neither Shelby Meyer nor Kathrine Holt had PK-LT either. Despite that...Uri Geller could do all the PK, right? On top of that, he could also use ESP. Still, he looked suspicious to me..."

Pidge interposed, stopping Coran’s story. "Well...in any case, regarding Acxa's problem, for the time being, the important thing is she believed in her powers. She felt that her teacher's attack on her was quite unfair. This resulted in..."

"Her cursing to kill"?

"Yes," Pidge interposed.

"That's our current situation. She can't have PK-LT like Nuna Kulagina though, right?"

...In any case, if she could stop hearts...

"...That's...not possible, right?"

Pidge pondered the idea for a moment. "...Correct, it wouldn't happen," she clarified.

"Anyway, we need to deal with our current situation. Perform some exorcisms."

Everyone stood up.

As everyone left to do their exorcisms, I stayed in the conference room. I was alone and bored... Before I realized it, it was already evening. Dusk had come. The sounds of sweeping and cleaning continued for some time. Eventually, there was no sign of students. With all the sounds gone, the school had really become a lonely place. I unintentionally thought about the dream I had. It was definitely about this school. The dark labyrinth. A place covered with will-o-wisps. What kind of spirits were they?

I didn't know. But it was just a dream. Um, how was I to go about this? On the other hand, whoever was guiding me in my dreams couldn't exist (The Pidge in my dreams came out, talked to me and watched over me. Was she a projection of my mind?). I really should have gotten a book on dream interpretation.

...I continued to think about it. As I was tidying up the place, there was a light knock on the door.

"Yes?"

"Huh? You're alone?" Acxa asked.

"Yeah..."

Her eyes swept through the room, "Can I come in?"

"Yeah, come in, come in."

"Thank you...What are you doing?"

"As a good-for-nothing, I'm just arranging documents here while looking over the equipment."

"How unlucky."

Once again I noticed that Acxa was sitting in a strange position. "So how're things going?"

"―Well, it's weird. Pidge seems to think our medium's having problems," I said. “Pidge is more of a ghost hunter, so she needs some help when it comes to spirits" I clarified.

"Heh, cool."

I looked blankly ahead. Come to think of it, no one has ever asked me what a "ghost hunter" was.

Oh yeah, Acxa has some psychic abilities herself so she must comprehend some of those strange things.

"...But, she might actually be an Onmiyouji. Ah, I'm not admiring her or anything, but it's true," I continued.

Acxa whistled, "In that case, she's even more amazing. Hehh, to think she's an Onmiyouji too," she said. "And what about the exorcisms? Did they go well?"

"Well, it seems that we have a difficult road before us. Our group's spirit medium says there are no ghosts here. We were almost fighting about it."

Acxa raised her eyebrows. "There aren't any? Then what caused the incidents at the school?"

"Yeah, well. I don't know about that. The only person in our group who can see ghosts is the medium, and he says he can't see any. We'll have to investigate from a different angle.–Oh right, Acxa, have you seen any spirits here?"

She waved, "No. I don't have that kind of power. I might not even have ESP."

"ESP?" Does she mean the kind that everyone was talking about?

"Don't tell me you don't know? ESP is a type of psychic ability. I'm no good at ESP, not at all. But I can do PK. I had no choice but to use my PK-ST. ...And that's when strange things have been happening."

She shrugged.

"Wow... you sure know your stuff..."

"Yeah. I'm just telling you what Miss Honerva told me. It's because she is very knowledgeable about parapsychological research."

" Hehh, she sure is."

"Yeah. That's why there were rumours of the Biology club becoming an occult club. In actuality, the club didn't really have any activities at all."

Acxa was using the past tense.

"...So how's the Biology club faring now?"

"Actually it's virtually over. The only member left is me. Ezor put an end to it."

"She ended it?" I asked.

Acxa gave a lonely smile. "What of it? It happened a long time ago. When I started bending spoons, she changed completely."

"That way of thinking is unproductive. If everybody were to try their utmost for themselves only, then eventually others won't be able to influence them."

Acxa stared back at me. "...Thank you. I feel a bit responsible though…”

"You don't need to think that way."

"That's right. But still, Miss Honerva has been put in a difficult position too. Since she's protecting me, all the teachers are criticizing her, even PTA. –During the time in which the school was split up into believers and non-believers, teachers and students alike shot her stony looks. Everyone was so mean and sarcastic to her. She ended up completely ostracized. In addition, the criticisms have been heavier lately. In any case, there are no ghosts here and no ESP, but people still claim to see ghosts here.”

Acxa grinned. "When I was attacked by the school, she came to my aid. The teaching practically came to a halt. And eventually, I couldn't think anymore."

"...Oh. What does she teach?"

"You don't know? She's the Biology teacher in this school."

I had to gather up my thoughts for a moment. As I talked with Acxa little while longer, Shay came into the conference room.

"Yeesh, I can't find Hunk anywhere," she whined.

"That sucks. Would you like some tea? I was just about to make some."

"That would be nice. Acxa, nice to see you."

"Same here."

Acxa was on her toes now. She seemed wary. But Shay didn't mind. Though already cheerful, Acxa eventually became relaxed and opened up to us more. We were able to wipe off her seemingly unfriendly personality, and our conversation eventually became really exciting. We were even able to see her smile.

"...It's been a long time since I had a conversation like this with someone other than Miss Honerva," she said gratefully.

"...Poor you... If you want, we can hang out sometime," Shay suggested.

"Yeah. Thank you. Today was really fun. And Lance, thank you."

"Will you come back?" I asked her.

"Yeah."

Shay stood up with a bounce, "I've gotta go too! Acxa, wanna leave together?"

"Of course."

As I waved good-bye, I was feeling happy. I loved making friends!

~

The next day, everyone gathered in the conference room. Pidge brought up news about Mister Ulaz. The previous day, he was in a car accident by himself, and one of the members of the Track & Field Club had collapsed in the locker room. Pidge frowned. The teacher in the car accident said he saw a ghost in the rear mirror. These incidents still happened even though everyone performed exorcisms yesterday evening.

...In other words, the spirit wasn't gone.

Furthermore, Shay's already hospitalized homeroom teacher wasn't doing well either. His condition worsened, and despite being in a hospital, he still claimed to see a ghost, which continued to cause disturbance there. He was also vomiting blood. Despite the exorcisms, the teacher's condition wasn't improving.

"...It's not working," Pidge calmly stated.

We were speechless as well.

Suddenly, I recalled the dream I had yesterday about the school. Will-o-wisps were scattered everywhere. I had the feeling that they were evil spirits. But the dream wasn't important or anything.

"So there are no ghosts here? Even with all that's happened?" Allura asked again.

"There are none," Keith firmly replied.

Even so, the medium had an uneasy look in his eyes.

"Did you observe everything thoroughly? So you really didn't see even one spirit at all."

"Even if you expect there to be some, there are none!" he was almost shouting. "If I don't see them, then there aren't any here!"

"Well then, how do you explain this school's situation? Is everyone lying? Or is this a mass breakout of hysteria—?"

Keith scowled at Allura. After watching the two, Pidge decided to stop the argument.

"Everyone, let's get back to work!"

  
~

Everyone disappeared, so I ended up alone again.

The end-of-classes' chime came and echoed noisily inside the school for a while, and time passed like a sea roar fading at that. Then, a silent-as-the-grave after-school came along.

I disliked after-school; it was cold and lonely. I wondered if Shay or Acxa would come…

Having thought of that, I heard the patter of footsteps. Without a knock, the door opened too. Shay popped her head in, and Acxa followed from behind her.

Oh. How timely!

"Hello... Oh…You're alone as usual, Lance. I met Acxa, so I came hauling her with me." Shay laughed.

"I was waiting, you know? I can't bear being alone after school until I sense it's dusk."

"It's too unbearable, indeed. That's why I thought of coming here to see you. Feeling grateful?"

"I am, I am. I must make some tea with my feelings of gratitude in it."

"Yay~" Shay laughed and turned to say, "See?" to Acxa.

"Aren't you perhaps treating the conference room like a coffee shop, Shay?" I told her, laughing. "Please, take a seat. Would you like to drink tea or something?"

We drank tea once the three of us had laughed for a while. After a pause, Shay leaned forward as though imparting some secret. "What's Hunk up to?"

"He's in the middle of doing an exorcism."

"Does it look like it's going smoothly?"

"Hmm... I wonder. The case this time is somehow giving us a lot of trouble." ...Come to think of it, we were always having a hard time though. But, well, the nature of the present case was unknown. So even if something was happening, I didn't know how to feel about it oftentimes.

"Hehe. Say, Lance, are you by any chance into Pidge’s supremacism, I wonder?"

I gave a start. "...What are you talking about?" I feigned calm as much as I could, but Shay giggled after looking seriously at my face. "It's useless, Lance. You can't escape a woman's intuition."

Even Acxa said in a teasing tone, "Heh~ That's how it is~"

"...Gotcha?"

"You got me."

Following Shay, Acxa spoke heartily too, "She seems pretty nice and the power she has is amazing!”" 

Without meaning to, I spouted my tea.

"Wha-What? Is there something wrong?"

"Acxa, you perfectly misunderstood something about Pidge."

"But... I thought she's rather nice."

"You jest. If Pidge were nice, this world would only have good people. It would be like heaven."

"That... Is that so?"

"Her personality is bad, _bad_. She's badmouthed and heartless, and additionally, she's narcissistic and secretive."

Shay peered at my face. "...But you love her, don't you?"

...Ugh. Dammit, dammit, dammit. Boohoo.

"Go on and admit it. I won't get angry."

"...Maybe."

" _'Maybe'_? It's as if it doesn't concern you."

I drew my face closer to the both of them. "Even I myself don't know sometimes. She often appears in my dreams. Do you think it's like that after all?"

"Completely. That's your love for that girl speaking," Acxa spoke with finality.

...Uuugh. As expected, that's how it is, huh? Gripping one another's hands tightly, we howled with laughter. We were shedding tears and laughing uncontrollably when the Hunk and Pidge returned.

I was very flustered.

Hunk was gazing at us. "It seems like you had a great time," he said in a joyful tone.

"Hahaha. ...How did things go on your end?"

“Horrible.”

"Oh?"

"Keith has no clue whether or not we could do an exorcism. I feel like I'm fetching water with a strainer."

Hunk looked at Shay and then at the darkness beyond the window. "Shay, you should be going home now. You too—" he started to say when he saw Acxa. As if to say, "Who's this?" he tilted his head.

I told him her name was Acxa.

As though saying, "Oh, hello," Hunk nodded.

"This is Hunk," I introduced him to her next.

The girl gazed at the priest solemnly. "...Aah, hi," she said in a barely audible voice and then stole a glance at Shay.

She reddened slightly.

"You two should better go home. I'll take you two up to the station." Hunk suggested and left with the two girls.

Pidge, after watching the three leave the room, began to go through documents. Somewhere in the room came irritating and unusual clattering noises. We looked up at the ceiling where the sounds originated. Thumping sounds continued once again; it's as if somebody were moving something hard on the floor above.

—However, this was the top floor, so of course, there's no floor above it.

All of a sudden, the light in the room dimmed. It wavered gloomily as if it were wearing down.

Pidge half-rose to her feet to apparently stand ready.

There were clunking sounds in the ceiling again. Soon, the seemingly exhausted light flickered. It was already dark outside the window. Whenever the light flickered, the ceiling would stand out faintly in the dim light before the bulb went out afresh.

After it flickered many times, I noticed a handful of hair falling through the ceiling, as though it sprouted from there. It was about ten centimetres long.

"...Pidge."

"Calm down. Don't move." She turned her eyes towards that thing which sprang out from the ceiling. The dim light turned off, and when it turned on again, that handful of hair was astonishingly two times longer. It seemed to be about 30 centimetres in length now.

Captivated by it, I could not move. Every time the light flickered, it steadily lengthened. Before I knew it, Pidge was standing near me. I stared at the ceiling over her head. When there was a flicker again, a hairline became visible—a hairline with a pale forehead.

...Someone's descending through the ceiling...!

My breath caught.

While Pidge had her back to me, her eyes fixed at it, she said, "...Don't move. It will be all right. Hold still."

"...Yeah."

The light wavered. It went down, revealing its forehead up to its eyebrows. Another flicker and closed eyes came in sight. It fell from the ceiling in every flicker, and before we're aware of it, its cheeks and jaw appeared.

...Before long, it turned into a woman's form dangling from the ceiling merely by her neck.

"Pidge..." I called out when I could not bear it anymore.

The woman, whose face was pale as wax, opened her eyes widely in an instant. She focused on us with glaring eyes as though she were starving for something. She then lifted her thin bloodless lips into a smile. Pidge clasped my arm with her hand behind her and held me to her back. "If that right there is a spirit from this school, it can't do anything. It will be all right."

As she was saying that, the light wavered again. The woman's body came down: her white-clothed -clad shoulders and then chest. Looking like she wouldn't stop soon, the woman leaned forward from the ceiling. Hanging upside down, she held a gruesome smile and watched us intently. The look in her eyes was brutal.

...If it kept on descending like this... A shudder ran down my spine. ...What would happen to us...?

Surprisingly at that moment, somebody opened the door.

"Coran!"

Pushing the door open and grasping the knob, he stiffened. He looked hard at the woman who was hanging from the ceiling and quickly linked his fingers. "Naumaku sanmanda bazaradan kan!" At Coran’s voice, the woman's body slithered back into the ceiling. The light turned on at the same time as the tips of her hair vanished.

"What was that...just now?" he gaped in surprise.

In an extremely calm voice, Pidge said, "It seems you arrived here swiftly."

"...With this, it's apparent that Keith is unreliable right now."

"Seems like it."

While listening to their conversation, I sank down to the floor.

Coran patted my head. "Are you okay? Were you scared?"

"...Yeah..." Those eyes were scary. Their look, cruel and evil. The woman didn't look at me even once in the end. It's Pidge whom her bloodthirsty eyes were riveted on. That's what I thought, and when I buried my face in my hands, an image abruptly flitted in my head: a will-o'-wisp burning at Pidge's feet. "Oh..."

"What's wrong, Lance?" Coran peered at me.

"That was...after Pidge."

"—What?"

"This room isn't its target. It showed up for Pidge. It's evil. She is in danger."

Coran and Pidge stared at me, bewildered. Then she crouched down to my level. "Why?"

"I told you; it's because that was evil. There are will-o'-wisps in this school, and that was one of them. It's aiming for you." ...I wonder how I could think like this. What was I saying?

"...Lance, are you awake?"

Although I thought I wasn't sure, my mouth moved on its own. "I'm awake. I'm not confused. I don't understand why myself, but I just know!"

Coran and Pidge exchanged glances. They told me to compose myself and had me sit on a chair, and as they asked questions, I told them about what I had seen in my dreams before.

Of course, I didn't say the midget appeared in them.

"I don't know why, but the moment I saw the will-o'-wisps, I realized they were absolutely evil. They weren't spirits; they were demons. They're absolutely dangerous."

Pidge got absorbed in her thoughts. She cast her gaze on the floor, her brown hair falling on her face. There came sounds of a lot of footsteps and voices; they were the sounds of everyone returning.

After listening to our explanation, everyone similarly stared in puzzlement.

Keith went pale. His exceedingly high spirit medium's pride appeared to be wounded. "That is impossible," he protested, his voice quaking. "It is impossible that there are spirits here."

"Well then, what did we see?"

"...I do not know. But that was not a spirit. It is absolutely different…If I’m wrong, then I have lost my psychic ability!"

Allura patted Keith's back in a comforting manner. "You have affinity with spirits. You just don't get along well with the spirits here…Anyway, since we don't know the true nature of what we're up against, I think it's better to not be in this school at night. Let's go home"

I got deeply uncomfortable. It felt like I had snatched Keith's most prized possession. He was a pro. Moreover, he was hailed as top-notch.

Pidge stood up, "Allura is right. That will be all for today."


	17. Chapter 17

The next day, although it was daytime, I was kind of creeped out by the conference room. Nobody had come yet so I was waiting for everyone to show up. The door opened, and I thought they finally arrived. But when I turned around, it was Shay and Acxa who peered in.

"Eh? You're alone again?"

"No one arrived yet," I was strangely relieved. _That_ didn't show up in this room. Although I told myself that it was targeting Pidge, I was still uncertain.

" ' _Not yet_ ,' you say? It'll be lunch soon, you know?"

"...Yeah. Everyone's tired. I myself don't want to look at the desk work and do it."

"Well... Did you make some progress in your job?"

I smiled vaguely. I was wondering if Acxa herself wasn't to blame for this mysterious phenomenon. After I recounted yesterday's incident, it didn't bother her at all.

"Did you eat lunch already? If you don't mind, would you like to eat with us?"

"...Oh, I didn't bring my own lunch."

"That's what I thought!" Shay held out something wrapped with a table napkin, "I also made your share! I wanted to practice a new recipe!"

"Eeh, no way! I'm so happy! Thank you!" I squealed, teary-eyed.

"I'll make lunch for you tomorrow," Acxa beamed. "OH! I forgot to tell you yesterday," she said while unpacking her lunch. "Miss Honerva said you should tell her if there's anything she could assist you with. I'll also help, so let me know whatever I can do."

"Wow."

"She was impressed after I told her Pidge is an _onmyouji_. She's an admirable sort of person after all!"

"Really?"

"Yes!"

The three of us ate lunch enjoyably and afterwards talked about foolish things while sipping tea. It was then that Pidge finally arrived with Shiro following behind her.

"...Acxa?"

"Ah, good afternoon," She raised a hand to Pidge. After that, she and Shay stood and waved their hands to me. "Then, I'm leaving. I have PE this afternoon."

"Okay."

"Really, let me know if there's anything I can help you with." Acxa smiled.

"Thanks. I shall find a mountain of work for you."

She laughed shortly and left.

“ You've become surprisingly good friends with them," Pidge watched the two leaving, looking strange.

"I guess so. It's due to my charisma," I said, winking.

"Perhaps..."

...Eh? Um... I was expecting a sarcastic comeback, so I'd braced my mind for it. But she merely gave a simple reply. Pidge sank down into a chair. Noticing her eyes were a bit reddish, I probed, "Your eyes are bloodshot. Didn't you get any sleep?"

"I didn't. Me and that woman were glaring at each other until morning."

 _'That woman'..._ Don't tell me… "...That woman from yesterday?"

"Yeah. Your intuition was correct. Last night, it appeared in my room."

Shiro regarded Pidge as though it were the first time he heard of that, "You should have called me."

"Indeed... I thought of that. But I had a feeling that it would be dangerous if I looked away. So we glared at each other till morning."

Why is she talking as if it seems nothing?

"I would have heard you if you knocked on the wall. Why didn't you call out for me?"

"Yeah, well... I was a little curious...if something would happen. Isn't it wrong if I wake you up while you're in deep sleep?"

"Pidge, if something had occurred, what did you intend to do?"

"Well, of course, if the situation worsened, I would call you. But it didn't come to that..."

...How rare. Pidge and Shiro were having a personal conversation. I wondered what made the latter anxious that got Pidge feeling a bit impatient. "Hey, boss?"

"Hm?"

"This is an irrelevant question, but are you and Shiro living in the same place?"

"...Yes. What about it?"

Well, it's nothing really. I see...That's how it is... I didn't know her address and telephone number. (Because there's the office, it served its purpose well enough that it's unnecessary for me to know other things.) I wasn't even sure where they were living. Hehh, I felt I'd come a step closer. "Ah, that's right. Acxa had said we should tell her if there's anything she could help with."

"She did?"

"Yeah. Miss Honerva too."

"Amateurs can't handle the situation well when we have them help us..." Pidge grumbled, looking fed up.

"They aren't amateurs, are they? Acxa is extremely well-informed at different kinds of things. Since she said her knowledge is from Miss Honerva, the teacher is even more well-informed."

"Hmph..."

"If you try talking to them, you'll discover that they're good people. I thought Acxa was scary when we first met her at the Biology lab, but at that time my nerves were considerably on edge...Hey, Pidge?" I tried saying what was bothering my little heart. "Acxa can never really put a curse on anyone, right?"

She looked puzzled. "I guess not. No matter how much PK she has, she can't possibly curse a large number of people like this. Not to mention, there's the fact that the spirits are appearing where the victims are..."

"About cursing straw dolls and such, they don't work, do they?" I asked.

"According to hearsay, superior psychics are superior spellcasters, but...that's probably not true. When you use a straw doll, you'll have to hammer a nail into it."

Uh-huh. That's true. "It should be painful at the spot where you hammered the nail after all, right?"

"...Yes. Such instances like spirits appearing due to straw dolls are—"Pidge began but jolted back. She turned to Shiro; the latter also looked like he had the wind knocked out of him. "Shiro -"

"That is possible."

Eh? What is? I examined the two of them. What are they talking about?

"Why didn't I notice it until now?" Pidge slapped her forehead in frustration.

"Um... Hello, are you there?" I queried, and Pidge glanced back at me.

When she was about to say something, we heard many footsteps. It was the arrival of the group of psychics.

~

"I'm sorry we arrived late…" Allura started explaining while coming in.

Coran went to pick the others and took brought them in his car.

He frowned. "It's because Keith was grumbling that he doesn't want to come..."

At his reprimanding gaze, Keith said, "I don't want to come here and be of no use." He's absolutely still sulking.

With her cold voice, Pidge said "The present situation is now clear," she declared, and everyone's eyes rounded.

"...What did you say?"

When Coran moved forward, Pidge said, "I said I know what's happening in this place."

Everyone fell silent.

"It is a curse."

...A curse?

"Somebody is casting a curse on people in here. That is the cause of everything."

"Hey, hold on a moment," Coran interrupted in confusion. "A 'curse,' you say...? Then, does that also mean somebody is using a straw doll?"

"It's slightly different, but it's almost like that."

In a dubious voice, Allura also said aloud, "But then, what about the spirits?"

"They're not the problem."

"Saying they’re _not the problem_ ... What is the connection between the curse and the spirits?"

Pidge surveyed everyone. "The practice of cursing someone by driving a nail into a doll originally came from Onmyoudou. This influenced Shinto, Buddhism, and Shugendo and was furthermore established as folk magic."

"...That's true, but..."

"There are two ways to curse someone in Onmyoudou: 'Enmi ' and 'Kodoku. ' 'Enmi ' is a cursing method that consists of using either a doll or the belongings of the person you're cursing. 'Kodoku ' involves killing an organism, and that organism's malicious spirit will be used to curse one's enemy to death. Using a straw doll is a technique of 'Enmi.' Onmyoudou originated from the philosophy of eight Yin-Yang trigrams which came from China. The Onmyoudou in Japan…is a mixture of eight Yin-Yang trigrams’ philosophy and China's ancient enchantments...Usually, when cursing someone by nailing a doll, the grudge of the person who hammered the nail reaches his or her enemy through a mysterious power, and thereby one would think that malice does harm."

"Isn't that how it is?"

"It isn't. By driving a nail into the doll, the person casting the curse beseeches a god or a spirit to put a deadly spell on someone. Receptive to that plea, the god or spirit will direct the death curse to one's enemy. This is the original form of 'Enmi.' In other words, through the use of the 'Enmi ' method, the god or the spirit will be used as a demon in the end."

"...Hold on. Did you say _demon_...?" Allura raised her voice. "What do you mean by that? Are you saying that if you cast the 'Enmi ' spell, rather than a mysterious power, it is the god or evil spirit that will come to torment your enemy?"

"That's right." Pidge swept her gaze over us.

...An evil spirit would come to torment the other person… "That's..." I muttered, and Pidge gave a nod.

"I think what's happening in this school is undoubtedly caused by 'Enmi.' This is the aspect of the case: Someone cast the spell of 'Enmi ' against the people involved in this school. Because of that, evil spirits go to the location of the accursed party. These evil spirits don't have the power to kill those people overnight. They will lead them to their deaths by gradually tormenting them. When the spellcaster's power isn't enough, he may not be able to call a spirit to kill his enemy. Anyway, according to rumours, strange things are happening in this school because of that curse. Nervous people who are affected by these rumours start misunderstanding that supernatural things are happening to them. The extreme example will be that girl who was possessed by a fox spirit. That's how pandemonium broke out in this school."

"...I get it." Coran groaned. Then leaning forward, he asked, "Who the hell is doing this?"

He had asked Pidge, but it was Keith who answered, "I know who's doing such a thing. ...It's Acxa, isn't it?"

...Acxa?

Allura bobbed her head. "You're right. Her own psychic ability rejected her, and she was severely criticized. People who covered up for her also suffered severely. So isn't that why she said, 'I'll curse you to death'? She put her words into action."

"Acxa didn't do that!" I yelled unintentionally.

"Ooh, why not? Is there someone else who would?”

"Acxa isn't that kind of person. She wouldn't do that."

"Well, as they say, appearances can be deceiving."

"She isn't like that!" They didn't even know Acxa... "Perhaps somebody else did it! There are probably a lot of people who bear a grudge against teachers and students. Maybe they framed her!"

"I doubt it. ...Well, call Acxa. If we question her closely, won't everything be cleared?" Allura stated plainly.

"I won't let you do that."

"Lance, exactly what is up with you? Do you only think she's innocent because she's pretty?"

"It's just that you can't do that. Are you going to apprehend Acxa without any proof just because she has a motive? She's already hurting due to severe criticisms about her psychic ability issues!"

The first time I met her, Acxa's entire body was on edge because of the distrust of others. Although she had finally calmed down a bit, something like that could happen again!

Pidge peered at me. "Acxa is the one who's the most suspicious. Mister Ulaz, one of the victims, is the very man who accused her at the morning assembly."

"...But you're wrong."

"Can you tell that for sure? If we leave her be, someone might end up dead, you know?"

...No way. I cast my eyes down. Saying something like that, I couldn't assume she was absolutely wrong…

At that moment, an image crossed my mind. I couldn't describe it very well. It was kind of a coloured shadow. I had a feeling that the unidentified thing was clearly telling me "No." I lifted my face and returned Pidge's gaze directly. There were spirits as I'd thought. Pidge was being targeted as I'd thought. I will believe in myself. "It's not Acxa. I'm sure of that."

Pidge's beautiful brown eyes gazed back at me. "...Are you positive about that?"

"I am."

"Is it your intuition again?"

"Yes, it is." ...Any complaints?

Unexpectedly, Pidge's eyes softened, "Very well. I'll believe you."

"...Really!?" everyone shouted, reflecting my surprise.

"I owe you a lot this time, so I'll put my faith in you here. For now, we'll settle with the hypothesis that Acxa might not be the culprit, and we'll search for the very culprit himself."

...Yay! Thank you!

Keith looked displeased, "Pidge, are you serious?"

"Of course."

Kieth appeared even more displeased. “Are you going to leave things be until the culprit is known? As things are, we do not even know if someone is dead."

"I'm aware of that. We can't leave the curse alone. Shiro and I will look for the perpetrator. I want everyone else to search for the dolls."

Everybody went speechless. "What?"

"There are two ways to break Enmi; it's either we return the curse to the spellcaster, or we look for the doll used for Enmi and burn it. As a rule of Enmi, one must bury the doll nearby the cursed person, such as in his or her house or workplace. If the culprit is connected to this school, then it's highly likely that the dolls are in the vicinity."

"And who will you have looking for them? Us?" Coran looked weary. "How vast do you think the school grounds are? If you include the planned construction site for the adjacent student centre, do you know what a huge area that is? Are you saying we should dig up the whole place for that!?"

"At least, the culprit must have buried a doll of me on the second or third day. I think we'll know if it's still buried later."

Coran eyed Pidge resentfully. She gave him an icy stare in return, "How about you go home if you don't want to do it?"

"...I'll do it. I'll do it, okay?" Coran shrugged.

Pidge turned to Shiro and me, "Let's begin. Come with me." Shiro and I followed Pidge who walked ahead of us. There’s dead silence in the school building where afternoon classes had started.

“Pidge! Where are we going?”

“There’s something I want to check,” was her short reply, and she headed to Shay's classroom.

At present, her class had apparently transferred during school hours. The classroom was deserted; unattended, it was cold. It appeared totally different when there were people in it. It’s the cursed seat. The girl who was sitting on it was injured and hospitalized right now.

Pidge took out the belongings inside the desk without a word. She peered into it and then turned it over. “…Found it.”

…Shiro and I peered into the desk as well.

A paper was stuck directly deep inside it. Pidge peeled off that paper. Behind that, a board of hitogata was affixed with a packing tape. She tore off that doll and held it out to Shiro. He regarded the hitogata and remarked, “…It’s well-made. There’s no mistake it’s Enmi. However this…doesn’t put a curse on a specific individual, but seemingly on someone who has this seat.”

“Indeed.” Pidge nodded. She turned to the dazed me and said, “This seat doesn’t cause accidents to anyone in particular, but to the person who sat on it. Besides that, I believe the one it’s cursing isn’t a person but the desk.”

…I see.

“If we take this as an example… we can suppose that the curse at the track-and-field clubroom also didn’t target anyone specifically, but the entire track-and-field club members. …Let’s go and see.”

The tenement-like building where the track-and-field clubroom could be found laying on the edge of the field.

Pidge glanced inside and tilted her head a bit in doubt at the clubroom’s concrete floor. “Is it usually underground?”

“Yes. It can also be above the ceiling, but…”

Pidge cast her eyes up at the ceiling Shiro had mentioned. It was a ceiling merely formed by a square board. She dragged a chair from that area and stood on top of it. She started examining the room’s ceiling board. “It’s possible that any of the guys have moved it though…” Pidge knocked on the ceiling board.

Dust descended upon us, and I covered my eyes. In haste, I looked down and blinked. The floor nearby a locker had a crack, and I noticed a small rise on it at that instant. “…?” When I looked at it properly, I could tell that the concrete that covered the floor was broken and that that spot was slightly elevated. I touched the little risen concrete as a test.

—It budged. With all my might, I lifted that chunk of about thirty centimetres on all sides. The ground under it became visible. “Pidge!”

At my call, she jumped down from the chair. She looked at the gap I’d indicated and came digging up with her immaculately white hands. Oddly, I felt as though I’d committed a crime, so I hurriedly helped her dig.

“…I got it!” I touched a hard object with my fingertips right away, and I pulled that out.

It was a hitogata made of a whittled board. On its surface, characters were written with black ink, but I couldn’t read them because it’s muddied. When I gave it to Pidge, she handed it over to Shiro who simply nodded wordlessly.

Pidge turned around to me. Her eyes held a faintly tender expression. “Well done, Lance.”

I couldn’t believe it. The heartless Pidge praising me? Whoa!!!

“As expected, it’s Enmi. No doubt about it. All we have to do is to collect the rest of the buried hitogata. Lance did a very good job this time.”

I didn’t do much.

“Collecting them all will be difficult,” said Shiro, and Pidge stood up while she dusted off the dirt on her hands.

“I don’t think so. We could ask the culprit.”

“How will we find the culprit?”

“It’s not impossible. We should find out who’s connected to that cursed seat and the track-and-field club. The culprit would be at the extension of that line.”

“…Yes.”

Pidge ordered Shiro to do something, and the latter went out to investigate. Me and her searched for Shay. Once we had forcibly pulled her to the conference room during her class, we briefly explained the circumstances to the bewildered girl and asked for her cooperation.

“That’s fine with me, but… What can I assist you with?” inquired Shay in curiosity.

“Don’t you have any idea about that cursed seat?”

“I would have told you if I had any…”

“Then I’ll rephrase the question. The culprit has a grudge with a person who sat on that cursed seat. —Who was sitting on it initially?”

“It was a girl named Narti.”

“From what day and until when did she sit on that chair?”

Shay was wrapped in thought for a moment. “Um, we first changed seats in the middle of September. We change seats every 15th day of the month. So with a summer break in between, I guess Narti sat there from the end of school to September 14.”

Pidge nodded and took a note of that. “She had an accident, didn’t she?”

"Yes.”

“When did she get into an accident?”

"Um, I forgot what day it was, but it was two or three days before the seat change. That’s why at the beginning everyone thought nothing of it.”

“Right… The culprit has 15 May to September 14 with a summer break in between… So two or three days before…would be the 11th or the 12th day. It might be during that time that the jufu was stuck to the desk. Since the series of accidents and illnesses started occurring on mid-September, the person who sat there before Narti probably had nothing to do with it. She must have done something to cause the culprit’s grudge.” Pidge explained.

“…I wouldn’t say such a thing—” Shay tilted her head.

“How about another victim of an accident?”

“Nuh-uh…” Shay tilted her head thoughtfully more and more.

“Someone at least holds a grudge. It’s possible that the culprit only knows how Narti looks like. Meaning, a teacher who’s not in charge of her class or a student from another grade may have that limitation.”

“About that, just a second… You see, Narti sometimes comes in contact with teachers who aren’t in charge of her class, and she even gets involved with clubs and people from other grades at times. The strict Narti also regularly visits the people in the literature club.”

Pidge tapped her pen against the desk. “Well, how about the track-and-field club? Who has a grudge with that club?”

“…Track-and-field… I heard that they have a never-ending squabble with the softball club regarding who has the right to use the field. But then there’s a strong disagreement between the track-and-field and volleyball clubs. Because of that, the former seems to have a bad relationship with the volleyball club as well. And…” All of a sudden, Shay said, “The track-and-field club’s advisor is a realist.”

“…?”

“The advising teacher is the kind of person who doesn’t believe in things like spirits and psychic abilities. Consequently, all club members are non-believers as well. Ezor has track-and-field as a club of her required curriculum. But track-and-field club members are mostly there in the curricular track-and-field, and it’s very likely that she was bullied by them.”

After Pidge pondered for a bit, she asked for the name of the advising teacher. The advisor was the teacher who said on our first day that a ghost appeared in his car, and he was hospitalized due to an accident afterwards.

“Did Ezor frequent Ulaz’s class?”

“…Yes. You see, during the Acxa Panic… That is, when the school was in an uproar since Acxa said she can bend spoons, she became greatly sought after. If they found her on the hallway or somewhere, everyone would drag her into a class. Ezor was always found together with Acxa, so she had come to our class many times.”

“I see…” murmured Pidge, and then she asked, “Is Narti, who had an accident first, a non-believer of psychic abilities? Or is she a believer?”

“…She’s a firm non-believer.” Shay stared at Pidge anxiously. “Which reminds me, when we took Acxa into our classroom and such, she spoke with extreme sarcasm for us to hear. She wasn’t sarcastic to Acxa and us only; even members of the biology club and Miss Honerva were under fire as well. She clearly complained to us, who invited Acxa.” After saying that, she looked at me. “Lance… is this the cause? Is Ezor the culprit? Or is it…?”

“…I don’t know.”

Ezor wasn't coming to school. We heard she was persecuted by teachers and bullied by students and that in the end, she dropped out of school after being absent.

She might have a strong grudge towards the people who attacked her. Since Ezor wasn’t in school anymore when we arrived, we forgot about her. Even she could bend keys… Pidge had said that ‘Superior psychics can be superior spellcasters.’ In that case, the culprit could be Ezor…

Pidge asked Shay about the names of the people in the anti-Acxa faction and marked them on a list of names.

After we let her return to her classroom, Pidge and I gazed at that list of names. The marked people were all tormented by the curse, and they had come to consult with us.

“So this is it, as expected…” she muttered.

“…Is Ezor the culprit?”

“I don’t know. It sounds wrong to you, but it’s also very likely that it’s Acxa.”

“It is, right? I don’t want to say it, but doesn’t Miss Honerva also have a motive? What do you think about her?”

“I’ve got nothing to say… However, if anyone can cast the curse, there’s no guarantee it will be successful. That’s if that person didn’t have training beforehand.”

“…Or have an ESP?”

"Yes. The person has psychic powers or had formal training and so on.”

How about the Biology Teacher? She’s well-informed about parapsychology, but no story came up about her having had formal training. Besides, was there anyone who had formal training in this school? Or someone who had ESP? Or someone with psychic powers? …No matter how much I thought about it, the most suspicious ones were Acxa -san and Sawaguchi-san…

However, I believed in my own intuition. Acxa wasn’t the culprit. If that was the case, the one who remained to be suspicious was only Ezor…

Pidge stood up. “Let’s meet up with Ezor.”

“…Yeah.”

Pidge and I went to a teacher to ask for her address. Because she herself hadn’t come to school, we had no choice but to visit her house. When we asked Ezor’s homeroom teacher, the latter said something unexpected.

“It seems like she ran away from home.”

This homeroom teacher was in the group that attacked Kasai-san and the others, so it’s expected that he would be tormented by loud rapping sounds wherever he went.

“I got a call yesterday from her home. I was told her money and belongings were gone, so she probably ran away. I told them to go out today for certain to file a missing person report to the police.”

Pidge went silent, looking perplexed. After leaving the faculty room, I parted with Pidge to look for Acxa.

I caught Acxa before her class. I pulled her into an empty classroom around that area. “I heard Ezor ran away from home.”

As soon as I said that, Acxa was a bit puzzled, and after that, she crouched down there. “…It’s my fault.”

“No, it’s not. That’s not true.”

“It is. …Ezor told me that she would quit school and leave her house to work. She intended to run away from home since the beginning…” she buried her face in her knees. “It’s true, you see. She told me she was bullied at school, but her family scolded her to go to school. …It’s my fault.”

“No, it’s not. It’s not your fault. Ezor isn’t fair!”

As though saying, 'What?’ she stared back at me.

"Well, isn’t it true? You should do your best to not lose to those around you. If you’re friends, you should do you're best together. Acxa, although you’re crying and worrying that it’s your fault, you stayed at school alone, and she just ran away by herself. She should realize that!”

Aah, it made me angry. Why did she run away? She left her friend and ran away by herself.

"It’s not your fault. It’s just that she is a coward and a slick one at that. You were also attacked. And yet you haven’t given up. You don’t have to feel responsible for someone who ran away and abandoned a friend that’s in the same boat as her!”

Tears fell down Acxa’s face while she squatted, and she looked up at me. "…It seems like I also thought of that… Now I feel a bit relieved."

"Of course you should.”

After those words left my mouth, she laughed. “That’s right. …Amazing. Lance, you’re optimistically willful.”

“Yup. I don’t think like everything is my responsibility. I’m not a weakly emotional girl.”

“…I’m sentimental, huh…? I think you’re right.”

“Yes, I am.” I sat down next to her.

“Ezor…didn’t go to school, and no matter how many times I asked her to go, she doesn’t want to. Even though I called her recently, I just admonished her, so she didn’t even answer my calls. I’m worried about her, but in my heart, I felt sad. It seemed like she left me behind, so I felt helpless.”

“Yeah.” …Of course, she would think like that.

“I wonder when was the last time we talked on the phone. It’s quite a while ago. At that time, she told me she’d quit school and go to work, and I cried after she hung up. Even I don’t know why, but I thought I was sorry for Ezor so I cried. But right now, when I think back on it, it wasn’t that. I felt abandoned by her and felt betrayed by my friend, so I cried because I was lonely.”

“Yeah.”

“Ezor is unfair.”

“I told you so.”

“I won’t lose.”

“Excellent.”

I was silent for a bit, staring at my feet.

“I have to go to my lesson.” Acxa rose to her feet.

“You shouldn’t worry too much.”

“…Yeah. I’ll do my best. Good luck on your work too, Lance .” After smiling at me, she waved. I also raised my hand and then abruptly called, “Hey, Acxa?”

“Hm?”

“You said it’s been a long time since you’ve spoken to Ezor, right?”

“What about it?”

“Then, she doesn’t know the school’s current state or that we came here to investigate?”

Contemplating, Acxa slanted her head slightly. ”…Probably… I think she doesn’t know… I had no chance to say it, but since I heard that she didn’t even answer Miss Honerva’s calls, I think she might not know. I should have told her. The attitude of everyone who attacked us must have changed a bit because they had seen a ghost. They became less aggressive, including Yoshino-sensei.“

"Yeah…” I answered reluctantly.

…I didn’t want to say that.

It felt like my throat was clogged, and I tried asking her again. “Regarding Miss Honerva… Can she see spirits?”

Acxa shook her head. “Why? If she could, she would have helped you guys a long time ago. I heard she doesn’t have the talent to put something into practice. She only knows how to do it by theory.”

“I wonder if she had no formal training.”

“I heard nothing about it…”

The teacher had no ability to cast a curse. So the ones left were Ezor and Acxa… But did Ezor not know that Pidge had come to school? In other words, wouldn’t that mean that she couldn’t curse Pidge!?

She had no motive to do that. She didn’t know about us after all. Then, why did the ghost appear wherever Pidge was? That couldn’t be a mere ghost. That was Enmi. It was an evil spirit summoned through Enmi.

So Ezor couldn’t be the culprit as well.

~

When I returned to the conference room and told her about the matter in question, Pidge gaped at me. “Lance, what happened to you this time? Aren’t you being extremely helpful?” she smirked.

…I was sorry, okay? For being useless until then.

“You’re right. Ezor isn’t the culprit. Besides, why would the curse follow me wherever I go?” she nodded.

"Isn’t it because you’re a hindrance?”

"A hindrance?”

"Well, aren’t you here to solve the mysterious case in this school? As you’re a hindrance to himself, the culprit decided to eliminate you.”

“…If that’s the case, then it shouldn’t be only me who’s cursed. Don’t you think all of us should have been cursed? At least, the curse shouldn’t be cast upon only me, but it should be on this conference room.”

“That’s…”

Oh, I got it. Yes, it was true. Definitely true.

“So in other words, what’s happening in this school is due to the curse, right? About the curse, didn’t it come from Onmyoudou? Then, isn’t an onmyouji the one who can break it?”

”…Yeah.“

"That’s the reason. Because you’re an onmyouji, you’re a hindrance to the culprit in particular…”

“What did you say I am?”

"An onmyouji.”

“Why do you think I am one?”

…I blinked in surprise. Why… she asked. “…You’re not an onmyouji?”

"I’m not.”

Whaaaat! No way!! “But didn’t you use a hitogata in the previous case!? Coran said only an onmyouji can do that…”

“It was Shiro who made that.”

…Shiro … “…Is he an onmyouji?”

"Yeah...”

…Whaaat? Then, Pidge’s simply a psychical researcher? Somehow… I’m disappointed…

“It’s unlikely that the culprit would misunderstand like that. Supposing I’m really an onmyouji, I don’t think there’s a way the culprit would know that…”

“I told someone…”

“What?”

"I told someone that you’re an onmyouji.”

“…Who?”

What should I do? ”…Acxa…“

After giving me an intent gaze, Pidge looked up at the ceiling and breathed a sigh. "So that’s to say… Acxa misunderstood that I’m an onmyouji? Lance, that means…”

“Yeah. I know. The probability that she is the culprit has gone up, am I right?”

“It was you who said Acxa isn’t the culprit.”

“Yeah.”

“Will your belief remain unchanged?”

"I want to ask you about one thing.”

“What is it?”

“Do you think there’s a possibility that someone can cast a curse without knowing he’s the one doing it?” Unconsciously, for instance. In a trance, for instance."

"That’s impossible. Especially if it’s Enmi...”

“Then… my belief hasn’t changed.”

Pidge tapped the desk lightly with her fingers. “Very well. I’ll believe you once again. …However, if evidence that suggests Acxa is the culprit comes out in the open, I won’t agree with you.”

“…Yeah.”

It was not Acxa. That was impossible.

Pidge rose. “I’m going to investigate something. You’ll help everyone search for the hitogata.”

“Roger that.”

~ 

I searched for everyone first. The group of psychics was currently investigating around the gymnasium. Hunk materialized from beneath the gym’s floor precisely when I had found Allura and run up to her.

"Hunk! Isn’t it muddy in there!?“

"Well…” As soon as he came crawling out from the narrow air vent on all fours, he got up with a troubled expression. “It’s no good. There’s nothing here as well."

Allura and Keith sighed in unison. Coran also came crawling out after Hunk.

"Does it really exist? A hitogata, I mean."

I told the doubtful Allura about the discovered hitogata from the demon’s seat and track-and-field clubroom. Everyone pondered.

"So it’s Enmi after all…? Can’t be helped then.” Coran groaned and surveyed us. “We’re done under this floor. Seeing as there’s nothing in here, it might be somewhere on campus. We’ve got no choice but to split up and search thoroughly."

"By the way, Pidge said she’s not an onmyouji."

"Pidge’s… not an onmyouji, you said? " Coran asked surprised.

"Yeah. She said the onmyouji is Shiro."

"No way.”

"I’m telling the truth.“

Coran leaned in towards me. "Then what is she? What is Pidge useful for?"

"I don’t know, but isn’t she always useful?"

"That’s true. But is that what she does? She’s in charge of mental work, and we’re responsible for manual labour…”

"Isn’t that how it should be?"

"Why must I be used by someone who can’t even do an exorcism all by herself?" 

Couldn’t it be because Pidge was smarter than you?

"Now, now.” As his habit, it was Hunk who handled the situation. “Pidge is a parapsychologist after all. Since she’s the one and only legitimate researcher here, don’t we balance her?”

I slapped Hunk’s back. “It’s just as he said. Now, let’s go look for hitogata, Hunk.”

When I suggested that, Allura said, "Oh yeah, there’s one more useless person here."

"Ooh, do you mean me? I’m not useless~"

"Are you sure about that?"

"Hahaha. I’m a teenager with a sixth sense.” Even Pidge praised me. I was useful this time. “Now, Hunk, let’s go~"

Pressing the astonished Hunk’s back, I left that place after him.

~

I parted with Hunk on the way and searched the school grounds alone.

Somewhere in the school, there must have been a hitogata being used for Enmi. I went to look at the campus thoroughly. In the shade of plants and even flower beds. I should have recognized it simply by seeing it. At least, Pidge’s hitogata should have been buried just recently. I walked along the western fence and turned up at the vacant lot on the other side of the sports field. Although formerly there seemed to be a student center, that was demolished now and had merely become a vacant lot. The tall weeds had withered. Canada goldenrods clustered around there. At that place was abandoned concrete rubble, and mouldered rebars protruded.

I took a short rest here. Leaning against a fence, I studied the weathered scenery. The wind blew, and the weedy grass made a dry, rattling sound.

This place was also a part of the school grounds, wasn’t it? Was I supposed to search on this empty lot? That was too troublesome. After all, there was a fence to keep anyone out just in case. I wondered if it was better to search the whole schoolyard. The afternoon sun shone. It would be sinking soon. I gazed at the vacant land with that in mind.

”…?“ I turned my head abruptly. I heard a child’s cries from somewhere. I tried walking along the fence. In the shade of goldenrods, I spotted an abandoned red backpack. I leaned forward and shouted, "Is someone there!?"

The cries grew slightly stronger.

"Hey, what’s wrong!?"

There was no response. I looked around. There’s no tear on the fence. Ugh. I climbed up the wire mesh that’s taller than I am. Once I forcibly jumped down, I ran to the backpack.

"Is someone there!? Where are you!?” When I called out loudly, I heard a faint voice nearby. I stood up and surveyed my surroundings. I felt like I heard the voice from that direction, so I sprinted there. There was a large crack on the surface of the concrete floor; a crevice about five centimeters wide stretched approximately three meters long.

I swept my eyes around me again.

"…Help me…“

It’s a feeble voice. I brought my ear near the crack. "Is someone there!? Who’s there!?"

”…“ The weak voice said something, but it was inaudible. Yet, I was certain someone’s in there. Could there be a basement down here?

As I wondered what to do, I glanced about. There must be a stairway going down to the basement.

I pushed away the cluster of weeds that were sprouting to cling to the concrete. The stairs should be somewhere… While walking aimlessly, my feet touched something hard. When I looked at it, I saw a manhole.

How could there be a manhole in this kind of place? Its heavy-looking iron lid got dislodged halfway.

”…Someone there!?“ I honed in and screamed into the manhole. A small voice replied from inside.

It was there!

Someone had fallen down in there, most probably the owner of that backpack. An elementary school girl.

"Are you okay!?” While calling, I pushed aside the heavy lid. Light streamed inside.

The inside of the hole wasn’t so spacious. Its area was about one size bigger than a four-and-a-half- room. However, it was deep. I couldn’t see the bottom of it due to the lighting condition. An iron ladder led the way down from the manhole, and a small figure was crouching in a corner of that space. It was gloomy and I couldn’t see that well. But it was a child.

“Are you alright!?” When I called out once again, that child raised her face.

“Help me,” came her small cry.

Was she hurt that’s why she couldn’t move? Even raising her face was a powerless motion.

“Why are you in such a place…? Wait for me; I’ll call someone right now! “

She screamed to stop me. “Help me, help me, help me! "

I stumbled a step or two forward. It would be easy to go down because there was a ladder, but I couldn’t climb back up while carrying that child. “Wait for me! I’ll get some help immediately!”

At my voice, the girl’s wails grew louder.

What was I to do? Go down below? It was pitch black in the hole, and she was alone in that kind of place. Moreover, she was hurt so it was probably unbearable. I had go down and climb up after I cheered her up and calmed her down. With those in mind, I sat on the edge of the hole and lowered my foot inside—

"Lance!?“ a strong voice called out from far away.

I looked around. Pidge’s figure was on the other side of the fence.

“Stop loafing around. What are you doing?”

“A child fell in here!"

Pidge slanted her head a bit. “…A child?"

“Yes! That…” I tried to point at the backpack, and gaped.…It was not there. That was absurd. It was certainly there earlier. There was a red backpack near the grass over there…At that moment, I missed my footing on the iron ladder.

“Kyaaa!” I immediately braced out my hands. Propping up my elbows on the rim of the manhole, I held out against falling.

Wait a minute, this wasn’t a joke! Falling down to the bottom of a hole and a well once in a lifetime is enough!!

“Lance!” Pidge, who had crossed over the fence, rushed over to me.

I reached out my hand for help at once. “Ah…!!"

—I was so dumb!

The moment I held up my hand, the strength I supported my body with reduced in half. With a jerk, I tilted and hit my back on the edge of the hole. Thereafter, the strength from my arm slipped away the instant pain caught my breath.

What was supporting my weight suddenly disappeared.

”…Ahh! “ I frantically grasped for the rim of the manhole. The concrete’s splintered surface scratched my palms. Pebbles fell from close at hand in sprinkles, and I reflexively closed my eyes and turned my face away.

Abruptly I sensed my balance crumbling. My hands that seized the rim failed to catch what I was relying upon.

…No way.

I’m falling.

Only my surroundings were in slow motion. The second all colour quickly drained from me, I flung against a wall. There was a dull thumping sound.

…What?

My arm hurt. Creaking shoulders resounded.

I wasn’t falling. I was in the air. A force pulled my arm. A hand fastened to it.

”…Pidge!“

She was holding my hand as much as she could, but I was way heavier then what she could handle. She tried to support her legs on the ground.

”…This… idiot…! “ Leaning her body forward almost through the hole, Pidge was trying to pull my arm with both hands. Her jacket sleeve loosely slipped out of place. She was about to fall. The feel of her hands digging into my arm got firmer. "Calm down and search for a foothold,” she said in a hollow voice.

I was too heavy for her. It was almost a miracle how she could hold me for so long. Even if I saw her carry heavy equipment, it was too much to hold a 60 kilograms boy...Either way, it must be painful for skinny Pidge’s slender arms.

When I pondered that calmly, what vanished rapidly returned. Yet in a flash, I felt bloodless, and all my hair stood on end. "I’m falling, I’m falling, I’m falling!”

"Calm down… Find a foothold!” she screamed.

A foothold? Foothold?

I fumbled around the space with my feet. The tips of my toes caught the rough concrete wall surface. I desperately stretched out my feet. With a steady curve of my body, my toes touched something hard. I checked it. It looked like an iron rod.

Oh right, there’s a ladder.

"There’s a ladder.”

Once I said that Pidge lifted her pained face. “Can you climb on it?"

”…Yeah,” I said and hoisted my feet on the ladder. I grabbed the ladder’s link with one free arm. Relieved, I put my weight on it, and the rung of the ladder gave away in no time. I was swiftly thrown back into the air again, and then shock went through my unbalanced arm.

The second I felt at ease, the ladder broke and my food slipped. I started falling magnificently as I clutched Pidge’s arm, taking her with me through the manhole.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For everyone wondering, Onmyōji were specialists in magic and divination. Their court responsibilities ranged from tasks such as keeping track of the calendar, to mystical duties such as divination and protection of the capital from evil spirits. They could divine auspicious or harmful influences in the earth and were instrumental in the moving of capitals. It is said that an onmyōji could also summon and control shikigami.


	18. Chapter 18

My head was spinning. Darkness was everywhere around me, the only light coming from the hole.

“You really are a trouble-magnet..."

I tried to focus my gaze on the one who talked. On top of me sat Pidge. Oh…. I forgot about her. She must have fallen on me while I was clutching her hand. Her sandy-brown hair was falling to her shoulders and her golden eyes were looking at me curiously. She wasn't wearing her glasses and her eyes sparkled with something inexplicable. I looked at her rosy lips, which were forming into a small smile. I blushed furiously.

Snap out of it Lance!

Pidge slowly got up and patted her clothes. I followed her actions rapidly while measuring the situation :Me and Pidge...together in a canal...in the dark...It could be interpreted as our little private date. Ahh, alone with Pidge in a dangerous situation! Now was my time to protect her! I felt pretty bad for always being a burden to her. It was time to show her my true charm!

“Are you feeling better now?” she said with a small smile and sat down on the cold floor, clutching her hand. Her shoulder must really hurt.

“Yes…I’m okay. You didn’t get hurt, did you?”

“My hand hurts a bit, but I’m okay..,”

I sat beside her, her presence suddenly making me calmer. Strange...I never thought staying near her would make me feel this serene...

After a moment of silence, Pidge finally said, ”Do you want to meet my friend Rover?” she smiled as she took out a little coin from her jacket. 

“That’s your friend? Haha!” I asked curiously.

She held it between her fingers. The coin shivered and disappeared from her hand. ”See, you scared him”

“No, you just got it in your hand,” I said pointing at her.

She held out her palms, but the coin wasn’t there. What? She patted her shoulder, then her elbow “There he is!” she smiled and showed the little coin to me.

“How did you do that? Pidge, let me see!”

“Catch!” she said and threw the coin at me. When I was prepared to catch it, the coin disappeared. ”You didn’t even throw it!”

“Really?” she smirked and showed me her empty palms again. Incredible! “Your shouting scared him away and he ran away…”

“I did not yell!”

She then patted her jacket. “Oh... there he was!”

“Wow Pidge, I didn’t know you knew these magic tricks!?”

“So, you think this is magic?”

“Yes, of course! What else could it be?”

 _“No, it’s not! you dummy”_ a different voice said.

“Whoa, what?”

“Are you scared of Lance?” Pidge asked, having a conversation with the coin.

_“Yes, I don’t like him! He made fun of me!"_

“There is nothing to be scared of. I promise he’s not as scary looking as he appears to be… he is also very friendly and full of charisma...”

So cool... I had no idea Pidge was a ventriloquist…Amazing…I clapped and Pidge smiled just like in my dreams. She looked at me softly and for the first time, I saw a tint of red on her cheeks. “Keep going!” I encouraged her.

Pidge took her coin and put it back in her pocket, ”I’m afraid he decided to go to sleep...”

Her smile dropped and her face became paler than usual, the blush long gone.

Outside it was getting darker. I was becoming restless.

Almost like she sensed my distress she said: “Don’t worry Lance…We’ll be alright…When everyone will go back to base to report and they won’t find me, they will go looking for us.” She smiled slightly and closed her eyes. ”At least I know Shiro will…”

The water was dripping rapidly.

Suddenly, Pidge shot up and grabbed my hand. ”It started…”

“W-What’s wrong?” I got up and looking uneasy at our surroundings.

“Whatever happens, try to keep calm…” Pidge looked at the wall in front of us. We stayed together as the room suddenly became colder. From the ceiling, the head of a woman appeared. The demon that targeted Pidge! She floated in front of us, staring creepily at us. Pidge went slightly in front of me. When the demon was face to face with the girl, a strange feeling rose in my chest. I could feel a strange cold breeze around us. As sudden as she appeared, the demon disappeared into thin air.

”Where did she go? Are we safe?” I shakingly asked.

From above came a bright light. “Pidge! Lance! Are you there?” Shiro’s voice through the hole.

“Yes!” she screamed. ”We’ll need a ladder and a torch! I…I think I found the rest of the hitogata!”

~

Back at base, Allura helped bandaged a nasty scar on my leg. On the table, we put the rest of the hitogata that we found them in the sewer.

“I can’t believe that there are so many of them…someone really has a grudge…” Coran said quietly. ”Who would have thought to look in the sewer?”

“Thanks to Lance we found them. As expected there is one with my name and with Lance’s...”

“What do we do with them now?” Hunk asked.

Pidge was sitting at the desk, her pale face a void of emotion. “We burn them and throw the ashes in the river. That way the bond is broken and the curse is lifted” she said calmly. She was looking a little bit exhausted.

“Now we only have to find the culprit!” Hunk exclaimed happily.

“It must be The Acxa girl…” Keith decided.

“No! It’s not her! I’m sure of it!” I shouted furiously. I thought we got over this argument!

We started debating the fact and screaming at each other. Allura took Keith’s side and Hunk tried to calm down the shouting parties.

“Pidge…what do you think?” Coran finally turned to the table to hear her opinion. The girl didn’t answer, holding her head in her hands. “Pidge…are you alright…?” Coran went near her and patted her shoulder. The moment his hand touched her, her body became unbalanced and she fell from her chair on the floor, without moving. She was unconscious!

“Pidge!” Shiro and I rushed to the fallen girl. Her face was deadly pale and she was breathing heavily.

“Somebody call an ambulance!” Shiro screamed and I watched hopelessly as he took her in his arms.

Was this the curse? Was that demon at fault?

~

Three days later I was back at Yuasa Highschool, looking after the equipment as Shiro has asked me to. I got no update on Pidge’s condition and I was very worried. What had happened to her? She was never this vulnerable…

My thoughts were interrupted when Shay entered the room.

“Hey Lance! How are you feeling?”

“I’m not very good…”

“The school has just been called from the hospital! Pidge has woken up!”

I jumped from the desk immediately “Really? That’s great!” I was so relieved to hear she was ok.

“I was asked to bring you, Acxa and Miss Honerva to the Hospital…at Pidge’s request…”

I rushed out of the room and left with Shay to see the boss.

~

When I entered the hospital room, the others were already there. Pidge was sitting in a bed dressed in a white hospital gown and was reading some notes from her notebook.

“Thank God you’re ok!” I happily exclaimed and sat near Allura.

“It was just anaemia, nothing serious…” she calmly replied.

Acxa, Shay and Miss Honerva entered the room after me. The teacher has brought some flowers for the patient. “We are happy to see you’ve recovered fast, Miss Gunderson” Honerva smiled and sat with the other two students.

Pidge nodded “Thank you. I’ve gathered you here because I believe I have solved the case. I just have two questions that I need you to answer,” she explained, looking at the students.

“Anything that could help you!”

“The first one is for you Acxa. Did you hear that I was an omnyouji from Lance?”

The girl nodded.

“Did you tell anyone else?”

“No, I didn’t. But why does it matter? What kind of difference would it make if I told anyone? Just say I’m the culprit and get over it!”

Pidge glared at her. “Just answer the question please…”

“I suppose Acxa did tell me that you were an omnyouji. But rest assured, I haven’t told anyone else,” Miss Honerva said with a reassuring smile.

“I appreciate that,” Pidge nodded.”I have just one more question to ask. Miss Honerva, where are you from?”

The teacher looked surprised for a second, but answered non the less.” From the northern region of Altea, Tulcea. But what do you ask?”

“The north of Altea…Thank you very much,” Pidge closed her notebook and said,” The case is now closed. I believe I have a complete picture of the events that occurred at Yuasa and the person behind the curses.”

Everyone looked at her with complete shock.

“You solved the case… only from those two questions?” Hunk whispered doubtfully.

“It’s really not that hard if you consider the facts. We are dealing with Enmi written on hitogata. If the dolls are found and disposed of correctly, the hax should be broken.”

"Ok, so who is it?” Coran exclaimed.

“You’re trying to say it’s me, don’t you? Get over it and spit it out!” Acxa screamed, tears in her eyes.

“Calm down. It’s not you,” Pidge stated calmly.” I doubt you know how to make a hitogata or have the skill to perform the curse, therefore, we can rule you out.”

“Alright then who is it?” Allura asked impetiantly.

“Our hexer…is Miss Honerva.”

~

The room became silent for a moment before hell broke down.

I couldn’t believe her word. The teacher was the one cursing people. But how? She looked so sweet and innocent…

“Inside the manhole on the school grounds, we found hitogatas with my name as well as Lance’s and the students and teacher’s names written on them. To perform the curse, someone would need to know the full name of the victim and it has to be placed in their vicinity. You are the one who made them, aren’t you Miss Honerva?” Pidge explained.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the teacher responded calmly.”What on earth is a hitogata?”

“A straw doll used to cast a spell. If there are more, please tell us so we can dispose of them.”

“How can I tell you when I’ve done nothing wrong?”

“You are guilty Miss Honerva.”

“It must be some kind of mistake.”

“All the evidence points to your involvement.”

“And what sort of proof do you have?”

Everyone was watching the calm argument between the two without daring to interrupt. Pidge's voice was so calm, that nobody could actually tell she was arguing with someone.

“You’re wrong! I’m the one who did this! I AM GUILTY!” Acxa continued to cry.

"The victims were the ones that hurt you and ridiculed you for your powers, which makes it appear that the motivation for the curses was coming from you.”

“Then correct me if I’m wrong, but wouldn’t that make Acxa more of a culprit then I am? She even confessed to it.” Miss Honerva smiled wickedly. Acxa looked at the teacher heartbroken.

She just threw her under the bus!

“Actually no, Acxa can be ruled out because of her connection with Narti,” Pidge continued.

“Narti?”

“Yes, she had an accident because she was staying at that desk. Didn’t they knew each other, Shay?”

Shay thought for a moment, but then nodded, ”Yes, they were both in the literature club for a short period of time”

Pidge smirked.”If the culprit knew the victim personally, then why curse the whole desk? She wouldn’t have needed to go to the trouble of putting a hitogata in such a place only to target one person. The answer is simple: the curser didn’t know her name or how did the victim look like.”

That made sense…

“Based on what you’ve just said, you don’t have enough evidence to say I’m the culprit. Hah…I could have easily asked around if I wanted to know her name.” Miss Honerva continued.

“Following the students complain, those who denied the existence of psychic abilities banded together and made their feelings known. By that point, you and others were made to feel isolated and helpless. Would you really have felt free to ask? We also have to consider the names used: two people outside of Yuasa high school were targets of curses: me and Lance. There were a limited number of people who knew our names. Speaking for myself, I can only remember disclosing my full name to the school principal and then to you in the lab when you first met.”

Memories came back to me in a wave. The first time we met Acxa and Miss Honerva was at the Biology lab, where both Pidge and I disclosed our full names. Oh my god…

“The principal doesn't know Lance’s full name, so that would mean, as far as I can tell, that you are the only person here who knows both of our proper names Miss Honerva.”

“And why would I want put a curse on you? What kind of motive would I possibly have? I don’t even know you!” the teacher laughed.

“ A few minutes ago you said that Acxa told you she had talked to Lance who told her that I was an Omyouji isn't that righ? Zuzo hexes come from Omnyoudi, so if I were an omnyouji I might be able to put a stop to them. Because of this, you tried to get rid of me before I can figure it out and act.”

“If that's true then why would I bring Lance into it?”

“Lance has demonstrated a sharp intuition on this case, saying that Acxa wasn’t at fault. You thought that people will start believing him…”

“It’s not true! I’m the one responsible! Miss Honerva was the only one who believed in me…” Acxa silently cried. Shay was trying to comfort her.

Pidge sighed. “It’s easy to understand why you’d want to protect your teacher. She was the one who stood up and defended you. But it’s no way your words caused this. You simply don’t have the power or knowledge to perform the curse. You weren’t even able to bend the spoon when I told you to.” She said softly. “Where do you suppose Acxa learnt that particular trick to bend the spoon with the edge of the seat, Miss Honerva.”

“I don’t know.”

“She learnt it from you. You past on your knowledge. No one else would know to do that… You have a remarkable understanding of psychic powers and parapsychology with an interest in some specialized field as well.”

Shiro stood up and gave Pidge an old newspaper.

“I followed my hunch and started poking around in some old papers. It wasn't long before I came across this: according to the date here it was during the psychic craze that happened when you were a child. Among the children who claimed to be able to bend spoons was a little girl named Honerva Haggar, from the north of Altea. As the craze grew and drew attention, many children began to come forward and claim they too had psychic powers. At first, the children became media darlings: both television and prints covered the stories, running specials and lavishing them with attention. But, as curiosity began to fade, the public began to look down on the kids. People began to call them fakes and questioned whether any of them had any real powers at all. One of the girls who came forward during that time was you, who boosted up from the Tulcea prefecture.”

“I wasn’t a fake!” Honerva suddenly snapped, shocking everyone ”I had real powers! I really did… sometimes it was easy and other times it just wouldn't work! Then one day that reporter came to see me! ‘ _If you really have these powers you should be able to bend this spoon… would you like to give it a try and show me_ ?’I thought that if I failed, he would write about what a liar I was and everyone would believe him! So just that once, I decided to use a little trick that another one of the psychic kids had shown me … I was just so nervous! There was a photographer… he caught me and wrote about the thing I have done…There was no one there to tell me didn't have to fake it! I didn't have anyone to teach me that when you can't make it work it's OK to just admit it! She said crying.

“I'm sorry... It's a shame Altea left the reputation of ESP and psychic research in the hands of the media. There were no credible research institutions at the time to determine whether there was real truth to the children's claims and abilities. This should never have been left to the court of public opinion…the media will always care more about headlines rather than the truth.” Pidge said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

“Did you really do it…?” Acxa asked looking at her teacher.

“I only wanted to defend Acxa's talent… then it got crazy and people started saying things like _why don't you really help that girl instead of encouraging her,_ asking me how I could call myself a teacher..”

“And so you…”

“That's right. It was just supposed to be a little prank at first,” She said smiling.

Everyone was shocked. Did she just confess to intentionally harming others?! I couldn’t believe her words.

“About ten years ago, a car wreck occurred in a small street near the capital. The driver, whose erratic steering caused the accident, gave a detailed report to the police he was quoted as saying that suddenly and seemingly out of nowhere a disembodied hand appeared before his eyes…”

Oh my gosh… what happened to Mr Ulaz…

“ The man who caused the accident also happened to be the reporter who published your story,” Pidge continued.

“Are you accusing me of that too? Honerva asked.

“It certainly seems likely, but if you did cause the car to wreck then there's no way in hell we will believe that you intended these pranks of yours to be harmless. Luckily no one involved has died yet, but it was only a matter of time.”

The case was becoming more and more devastating. How could she do that without any kind of remorse? How can she keep smiling through all of this

“Yes, that would have been tragic, but maybe if someone had died people would have learned a lesson about respecting things in this world that can't be explained by science,” she said standing up.

She walked across the room and placed the bouquet of flowers for Pidge in a vase. Pidge watched her closely and before Honerva finished arranging the flowers, the girl called for Shiro.

Immediately he stood up and took the flowers, scaring the teacher. He looked through them and found another hitogata.

She was indenting of cursing Pidge again!

“Aren’t you tired, Miss Honerva? The curses take a lot of power to do…” Pidge said softly. The teacher had nothing else to do.

~

A few days later we were all staying in the main lobby at the office. Pidge was released from the hospital and Miss Honerva lost her job at the school. For her actions, she was going to be punished.

Pidge decided to test me that day and brought a strange device with little lights. I was supposed to guess which ones were going to light up.

After finishing all the variations, I was sad to see I got every single one of them wrong.

“It's terribly impressive,” Keith laughed bitterly.

“Don’t worry Lance, it’s not that bad,” Hunk tried to console me.

“I knew it!” Pidge exclaimed, excitement in her voice. She looked at her laptop and then at us, ”Everyone, Lance is a latent psychic!”

Wait WHAT?? I’m a what?

I looked at her surprised. Confusion could be read on everyone’s expression.

“ You intended to guess which of the bulbs in the box with light up and hit the corresponding button over 1000 times now. To not get one hit is almost a mathematical impossibility so that’s why I think it's clear that this means Lance’s sharp instincts on this case weren’t a coincidence!” Pidge said and smiled at me.

“ I gotta say I thought he was a was something special along time ago… Remember at the creepy house he fell down the well and had that trippy dream and then when the gas line was on fire he saw that kid?” Hunk exclaimed.

“Lance is extraordinarily sensitive when it comes to those with intent to do danger. He has a very natural sense of self-preservation… much like a wild animal he can instinctively sniff out friend from foe…” Pidge explained.

Heyy you didn’t have to compare with an animal!!

“Who are you calling an animal?! If that's true then I guess bending spoons would make you up big hairy gorilla!” I screamed furiously. Why couldn't she compliment me without insulting me?!

“Lance!” she glared at me.

“Hey what is he talking about?” Shiro asked Pidge, looking a bit mad. “You need to be more careful !”

“I won't do it again..” she said, looking at the floor.

Why was Shiro so mad at her? The thing that she did was beyond amazing!

“Hold on there's no way we're going to let you off the hook now! If you really have been hiding that little ability away I'm dying to see you do it!” Allura smiled, looking at the boss excited.

Shiro shot her a mad look, but Pidge didn’t seem to care.

“I didn't have much of a choice,” she said and before Shiro could protest, she took the teaspoon and bent it. It didn’t break like the last time, because she bent it in a different direction. Still, it was amazing!

“That was so cool!” Hunk said, looking mesmerized at the girl.

“Alright now Pidge, you may be able to outthink these kids, but I'm not buying it! You'll believe anything… check it out she just bent it by pushing it with her finger. Here, let me show you: you support the handle in with your palm like this and then push the handle to you,” Coran explained, bending a little spoon without effort.

“What?! So it’s just a trick?”

“You are not using psychic powers, you are just making us look like idiots!” Coran laughed bitterly.

“The best way to keep from falling victim to it is to make sure you know all of the trickster's secrets…” Pidge smirked proudly.

Then that means that the spoon she bent at the Biology lab was also a trick? For me it didn’t look like that, she used another technique, bending it forward.

Even so, she was like a mystery for me. Every time I thought I understood her she was just a step ahead of me. Pidge was a truly wonderful enigma and looking now at her, explaining proudly her tricks, made my stomach full of butterflies. She was amazing…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part three is done!!!  
> Thanks for sticking with me for such a long time!!  
> I hope you enjoyed the story so far! <3


	19. Chapter 19

Christmas season was finally here! I couldn’t be more excited! I loved Christmas: the presents, the decorations, the food and most importantly the fact that I could see my sister, Veronica.

Christmas was one of the times she returned home and we could spend it together. She was a Captain in the army, and because of that, she didn't come home very often. Since father and mother passed away, we’ve only had each other. After I was old enough to take care of myself, we moved away from our grandparents to the capital. Not long after that, she was called to serve overseas and she only came home for a few days. I learnt how to be alone, but I didn’t feel lonely: I had my friends and most recently my co-workers at the office.

There were still four days until Christmas and three until Veronica came home, so I spent my days at the office doing paperwork. School closed for the break and Pidge promised me I could have a vacation from Christmas until the third of January.

After finishing my paperwork (before noon might I add- which is a speedrun for me) I decided to decorate the office a little bit-it was too boring. Shiro showed me some boxes with an old plastic tree and some colourful ornaments. He helped me set it up and I placed the garments around the walls.

“What are you two doing?” Pidge asked, coming out of her cave.

“I’ve just finished decorating the Christmas Tree! Doesn't it look amazing?” I exclaimed, proud of my designing skills.

Pidge rolled her eyes” Take it down.”

“Come on Pidge, is Christmas!” Shiro took my part.

When Pidge was ready to comment again, the door opened and Keith entered, “Wow, nice Tree!” he said, taking out his long red scarf. At least emo number 2 appreciates my effort.

“See Pidge, even Keith likes it!”

“What is this supposed to mean?” Keith glared at me, confusion in his eyes.

“Nothing, don’t worry!”

Pidge rolled her eyes but said nothing.

The door opened again and Coran and Allura entered. Allura was wearing a long chic purple coat and her long white hair was out. She looked gorgeous! Why couldn’t I fall for her instead of that little gremlin? My mind was playing tricks on me.

“Whoa Nice Christmas Tree!” Coran congratulated me. “This calls for a celebration!”

“If you want to party, go to a club or a restaurant. My office is not a ballroom…” Pidge said sarcastically.

“Come on Pidge! It’s the Christmas magic,” I took a garland and I wrapped it around her neck. I then placed a red hat on her head and before she could take it off, the door opened again. For some reason, we had a lot of visitors today and they all decided to come at this early hour.

Hunk came in slowly and observed the situation.

“If you are here to party, I suggest you go somewhere else,” Pidge said furiously, taking the garland and throwing it on the floor.

“I have a case if you are interested.”

~

So here we were, solving a small case at Hunk’s local church. It was surprisingly close to the office, so Pidge decided not to take the equipment before hearing the story from the director. According to Hunk’s brief summary, at this church, there was also an orphanage. Once or twice a month a kid would start acting strange, possessed by a ghost for some time. Strangely, the possessions became more frequent recently and the director decided to ask for help.

At the front door, an old man was waiting for us- the head priest. Hunk introduces us and we went inside to hear the case details. The church was amazing, with beautifully painted windows. The building near it hosted the orphanage, so Father Morgan took us to a spacious room, where we were served tea.

“There have been strange incidents lately. Even one this morning…One of the children was acting peculiar, so I contacted Hunk and he suggested that I speak with you,” the priest started.

“Can you tell us more details?” Pidge asked, listening closely.

“Well… sometimes spirits possess some of the children…I tried performing an exorcism on them but…it just didn’t work: the spirit leaves the body, but possess another. It’s not like the children end up hurting others, they just take another personality and hide themselves…”

“Hide?”

“Yes, they literally hide themselves … hide and seek… they stay hidden for a while and once they show up they go back to their normal selves, but they don’t usually remember what happened.”

The priest’s words were cut off by a strange sound from outside. It sounded just like someone was hitting the ground with something hard.

Father Morgan looked at the window, concerned written on his face” It seems someone has hidden again…The noise you just heard is an indication of ‘I’m hiding’ ” The priest took a big breath and continued the story ” Almost thirty years ago, when the orphanage was in its first days, I was looking after a boy named Steve Burnside. Many children had no family left, but Steve was brought here by his father, who promised to return next Christmas to take him. He was a cheerful child, always loved to play, but he couldn’t speak…It was almost this time of the year when we were almost finishing relocating the church to this current location when the children started playing around here. They love playing hide and seek, but they called it ‘stickie’, especially for Steve, who couldn’t speak so they would hit objects with a stick to signal everybody. He seemed to be the best at this game, having special hiding skills because they could never find him…but one day…he vanished. It was almost night when the children returned from outside, saying that they couldn’t find Steve. Despite the heavy rain we tried to search for him, but we found nothing. The scaffolding near the curch had fallen so we thought he might be underneath, but he was nowhere to be found. We only found his whistle, which I had given him to help him communicate easier…Although the police searched for him everywhere, even in the water-course behind the church, it was all in vain…”

The priest finished the story and looked at us with hope in his eyes.” I just want Steve’s spirit to find peace and to stop the possessions. Can you help us?”

Pidge nodded,” Of course.”

~

After finishing the tea, Pidge, Hunk and I went outside to look around. Priest Morgan showed us the place they found the whistle, near the water-course. It looked pretty deep. The fence that separated the river and the church was made of brick and was pretty high, so Hunk came up with the suggestion that Steve jumped the fence in order to hide behind it, but he fell into the water.

“It might have happened…but that’s mere guess-work,” Pidge said, noting the idea.

Well, it sounded pretty reasonable, but then why didn't the police find the body underwater?

We were discussing different ideas when Shiro came up to us. “Pidge, Father Morgan said he prepared lunch for everyone.”

Pidge nodded, but when we were about to go back inside, a boy ran excitedly to us. He jumped on Shiro, screaming ”Daddy!”

We all looked dumbstruck. Shiro had a kid??

At that moment, the head priest came outside, followed by his wife.

“Oh Izumi, there you were!”

“Is this the child that went missing this morning?” Pidge asked, looking at the little boy that was clutching Shiro’s leg as his life depended on it. The older man was looking a bit uncomfortable but was still smiling at the kid.

“Yes, that's him. Izumi, come here” Mrs Morgan urged him sweetly, but the boy didn’t move. She tried again, using a different name “Steve?” still no response.

“It seems like he’s mistaken me for his father…as much as I love kids, please tell him that I’m not,” Shiro said.

Father Priest looked embarrassed. “When he sees someone that resembles his father he reacts that way. It’s really hard to separate him…He just came out of hiding, so he’ll let Izumi go. Please take care of him until then.”

For the next hour, Shiro took care of the boy as much as he could. Even if he was very patient with him, the man still looked overwhelmed by the situation. He tried to smile and entertain the kid.

We looked from the doorway as ‘Izumi’ was playing with cars. Pidge looked at Shiro at the bring of laughter. “Hunk…can you try and do an exorcism?” We closed all the curtains and Hunk prepared. He drew a cross on Izumi’s forehead and began “Our Father, who art in heaven…Hallowed be thy name…Thy kingdom come thy will be done…”

I listened closely. “I feel bad for him…” I whispered to Allura, who was sitting next to me. “Who?”

“Steve… he’s happy because he thinks he was finally reunited with his father…but we’re about to separate him again.”

“But shouldn’t we let Izumi’s body free? He has also suffered…” Allura said, sympathy in her voice.

That was true…

“In Principio…” Hunk finished the exorcism, and Izumi’s body fell unconscious into Shiro’s arms. Hunk smiled.” Steve’s spirit is out of his body now, everything is okay.”

At that moment, the room started shaking and the lights went off. What’s happening? A strong force kicked me down. I felt my head spinning and my eyes closed. I fell into complete darkness.

~

The room started shaking and Lance fell on the floor. When the lights turned on again, everyone looked around the room, surprised.

“Was that a poltergeist…?” Coran asked hesitantly, getting up.” Number three, are you ok? Did he faint?” he went to check on the boy, who was on the floor. His blue eyes shot open and he jumped to his feet and looked around the room. ”Daddy!” He ran and hugged Shiro from behind.

Everyone looked shocked at the interaction. It was truly a sight: a teenage boy hugging eagerly a man almost as tall as him.

Hunk’s face fell “Lance got possessed by Steve!” The high schooler was jumping around, laughing around Shiro, who was more than overwhelmed.

Pidge smirked, “I knew Lance was childish, but to see him like this is certainly interesting.”

“Please, do something about this, I can’t take care of him!” Shiro looked at his boss, with an over-excited Lance on his back.

“We can’t do another exorcism, because Steve will possess somebody else, so look after your little kid, _daddy”_ Pidge smiled and turned to the others.”This has never happened before, right Hunk?”

He nodded. “It’s the first time he had possessed someone right after an exorcism. It usually passes some days before another one… and before I didn’t feel that much resistance when I performed an exorcism, but this time I could feel the spirit fighting… it’s really strange. We shouldn’t really perform an exorcism again…”

Pidge turned to Allura and Keith, who were laughing uncontrollably. Allura was filming Shiro and was joking with the medium.” Please help Shiro take care of … _his kid”_ she asked, rolling her eyes at the two’s immaturity. “Me, Hunk and Coran will look for a solution.”

Even Pidge enjoyed the situation, letting out a small laugh. Seeing Shiro trying to take care of a ‘child’ as big as Lance, who was trying to climb on his back reminded her of her childhood. She made a mental note to ask Allura for the photos later.

~

After Pidge left with Hunk and Coran, Shiro was left to babysit Lance, alongside Allura and Keith, who stopped laughing after almost 10 minutes.

“Hmm I smell something good, shall we go check it out?” Allura asked sweetly, patting Lance’s head. His eyes became bigger and he nodded eagerly. “ _Daddy_ will also be there, right?” she added, looking and Shiro who was about to faint. She was having way more fun then she should have.

'Lance' ran out the door to the kitchen with Allura, “As long as you stay with him, he won’t hide.” Keith told Shiro. ”If he hides, I think it won’t be the most pleasing situation...”

All the children were gathered in the kitchen and were helping the nurses pack some cake for Christmas. Allura decided they should also help, so the four of them started working. 'Lance' was laughing with the other kids, none of which knew what was wrong with the teenage boy. Some girls wanted to braid Allura’s hair and some boys recognized Keith from the TV, so he was bombarded by questions. Everyone was having a great time, except Shiro, who had no energy left. He loved children, but taking care of a 1,80 meters boy with the spirit of a 5-year-old and the stamina of a 17-year-old was beyond his powers.

When the cakes were all packed, the kids went outside to play. ‘Lance' eagerly took Shiro’s hand and went to the door.

“They kinda look sweet together, if you get used to it.” Allura smiled.

“You think so?”

“At least Lance is perfectly child-like…now if only _daddy_ Shiro acted more so –“ her words were cut off by Shiro’s voice “Okay, Listen to me Steve…I’m not your father…I can’t take care of you… you need to understand” he tried to explain the situation calmly.

‘Lance’ looked at him heartbroken.

“Oh come on, Shiro” Keith started but was also cut off.

“I’m really not him…”

With tears in his eyes, Steve left the room in a hurry. The three psychics tried to follow after him, but the boy was way faster thanks to the body he possessed.

They went outside, where they met with the rest of the team.

“Where’s Lance?” Pidge inquired.

“We kinda…lost…him?” Allura whispered.

Pidge shot the three a furious look “ You had one job… to take care of a child. How could you fail even at this?”

“It’s not our fault he has the energy of the Sun! Shiro tried to tell him he’s not his father and he got mad and ran away…”

Pidge rolled her eyes. ”Now he must have hidden somewhere…” At that moment the creepy sound came again, but now more violent. “Perfect…We've upset him,” she said sarcastically.

“We need to find him soon. It’s getting colder, and if he hid outside he’ll be cold…” Hunk suggested and they first went to the watercourse.

“He’s not here,” said Hunk, looking behind the brick wall. “Based on what’s happened in the past, Steve’s body should come out soon, but I’ve never heard of him making such violent noise before…”

“You got his spirit to leave Izumi’s body, but Lance got possessed because he was nearby. Apparently, this is the first time he’s done that. The frequency of the possessions has also increased. The poltergeist noise we heard was the most violent, so that means the spirit is more furious now… All the missing children reappeared on their own, but that doesn't mean it will happen again.” Pidge stated.”What happened to Steve’s real father?”

Hunk thought for a moment” Ah well, as far as I know, after leaving Steve at the church, his father left to join the army. Although he said he’d return once he finished his service, he vanished after that.”

Pidge looked at the sky, deep in thought.” Why does he hide…? Steve hides, then gives a signal to say he’s ready, but then he comes out on his own when he can’t be found, so his goal is not to disappear completely…”

“He wants to come home…that’s why he wants to be found…” Shiro whispered, putting the pieces of the puzzle together.” Steve wants to come back to the church, or rather come ‘home’. Not to a physical home, but more like a spiritual one…a place where he and his father can be together…”

“Correct… I think he wants to finish the game he started thirty years ago…Now we have to find him as he wants. ” Pidge nodded ”Hunk, did the children only hide on the church premises?”

“I believe so”

“We’ll need a floor plan of the church and the garden. We’ll have to look everywhere for him. If we don’t hurry, Lance could catch a cold.” She said, concern in her voice. Even if she didn’t want to admit it, she was worried for her assistant. Even if he only got in trouble, he had grown in her heart.

~

They parted ways and so the search began: Allura and Keith went to look in the church, Coran and Hunk In the buildings near and Pidge and Shiro outside. There was a lot of ground to cover and little time to waste.

Minutes turned into hours and noon passed with no sign of Lance.

“There must be somewhere where we haven’t looked yet…” Pidge said, back at the church where everyone gathered to talk about their ‘findings’ or rather lack of them. “Father Morgan, would you happen to know where Steve liked to hide?”

The priest thought for a moment, but it was his wife who responded “Nobody could ever find Steve… We were only able to find him when he didn’t get a chance to hide. I think that he must have had a secret hiding place. I often played with the kids, but whenever we were near him he wouldn’t hide in that place…”

“So unless he goes into his secret hiding place, he couldn’t hide and he would lose his chance to go there…” Coran said.

“After a while, he would come out on his own with the biggest smile on his face and start a new game…” Mrs Morgan said with tears in her eyes.

Pidge looked at the floor. “Father Morgan, can we borrow the children in our help to find Lance? We’ll have to reenact the hide and seek scene…I’ll follow the kids. Lance won’t be found by them, so we’ll have to look in the places a child wouldn’t think of.”

“That’s a brilliant idea!” Allura jumped excitedly.

~

Everyone started looking for the missing boy. The kids were having fun, and the grownups were following them in search of Lance.

Pidge was very attentive at their actions” Children would always look in places that are accessible to them…like closets, under tables…” she was deep in thought. “Eureka! In high places! They don’t check what’s up! We need to check over our heads!”

“That would be the same for outside, right?” Hunk asked and Pidge confirmed her hypothesis. “High areas like trees and buildings…let’s go!”

They started looking near the building and up in the threes.

“Lance!” Hunk exclaimed. He had already found him. The boy had climbed really high and was staying on a branch in a tree near the entrance of the church.

Coran helped him get down and gave him his coat “You shouldn’t have stayed hidden for so long, you must be so cold…”

‘Lance’ was shivering and his face was pale.

“You found him?” Pidge asked, coming with Shiro from the opposite direction. At that moment, Lance jumped from his place into Shiro’s arms, crying silently.

“It’s back to the beginning…didn’t you say we have to find him and he’ll leave Lance?” Hunk asked, but didn’t get a response.

Pidge was looking at the church and he followed her gaze. There were three statues of angels above the main door, gazing down on earth. “I found Steve…” she whispered, pointing at one of the statues. “I looked up there a little while ago too, but I didn’t see anything unusual…” At the base of the statue, almost invisible, there was a little skull.

Their gaze went down to look and Steve, who still had tears in his eyes. He took some small steps to Pidge and smiled warmly. “Thank you…” His eyes closed and his body fell. Pidge tried to catch him, but Shiro was faster and he took the unconscious body in his arms.

~

Shiro took Lance inside, to warm him up. Allura, Coran and Hunk followed him to prepare for their departure. The case was closed – Steve’s spirit had passed on.

“I wonder how he got up there…” Keith asked, looking with Pidge at the three statues.

“Back then there was a scaffolding because of the construction. He must have climbed it and hid there, but it fell down when the rain started and he had no way to go down. He lost his whistle and because he couldn’t scream for help he stayed there alone, waiting for someone to find him…he died alone in the cold…” she said and felt a tear rolling down her cheek. Before Keith could see it, she turned her head.

“Pidge… I mean K-“ his words were cut when Hunk came outside.

“How’s Lance?” she asked.

“He’s still sleeping, but I think he’ll wake up soon…”

~

My head was spinning when I woke up. I knew I was possessed by Steve, but I didn't remember what happened in the meantime. Pidge was near the bed, looking at me with a small smile.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

For some odd reason I felt tears were running down my cheeks “ Steve was reunited with his father… they are both together now…after all this time…” I whispered.

The door opened and everyone came in.

“Lance, I’m so glad you are alright!” Hunk and Allura hugged me eagerly. “We were so worried!”

“Thank you, guys…” I said with a small smile. “I didn’t do anything stupid, did I?”

“OH, you must have seen how hilarious it was watching you jump on Shiro’s back! I’ve even recorded it!” Allura said, showing me the video. I couldn't believe my eyes! AHHH I’m so embarrassed!

“I’m sorry Shiro…”

He patted my head” Don’t worry about it…” he smiled, reassuring me everything was alright. I was glad to have such amazing friends...

I looked outside. It started snowing and the moon was shining beautifully. Christmas was really here!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Christmas is here! Yay!
> 
> I want to wish everybody Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I hope you are having an amazing time, even if you celebrate or not! <3
> 
> I really wanted to keep this Christmas Special because it's one of my favourite parts of the anime! I hope the change of POV was not very confusing, I promise it will all go back to normal in the next chapters. 
> 
> As always, comments, kudos, ideas and criticism are welcomed!!!
> 
> Happy Holidays!


	20. Chapter 20

February came in a rush. I can’t believe how fast time passes. Just yesterday was the New Year! Veronica went back to the army and I returned to school and to work. We didn’t have any cases in that period, so I was stuck again doing boring paperwork.

Since I came back from the break, Pidge started treating me more decently and I always wondered why? She didn't insult me so often and I even heard her thank you one time when I brought her tea. Maybe she took the phrase _‘New Year New Me’_ to a different level.

January was very uneventful, but when February started, I began to have strange dreams. I always woke up in a cold sweat. The dreams are mostly the same: I was carried by two men through a huge maze. I always woke up before I could see my destination.

After having this dream almost seven days in a row, I decided I should tell Pidge. It couldn’t be just a coincidence.

When I opened the door to the office, I was surprised to see everyone was already sitting at the coffee table.

“You’re late, Lance,” Pidge greeted me with an annoyed look. I apologized and sat near Hunk. “Now that everyone is here, I want to talk with you about a very important case and ask of your assistance. The client has asked us to use our utmost discretion. If the press hears about it, it’ll become a media circus…I really don’t want to take the case, but various circumstances make it unavoidable,” Pidge said.

“Were you contacted by a Mister Kaitz?” Keith asked her.“ I also received his request, but I would like to cooperate with you if necessary.”

“Very well,” Pidge nodded. “I personally want to avoid all contact with the media, so I asked someone to be my stand-in.”

This was very strange. “I know you hate the press, but to go to that extent…” I whispered.

“The client has apparently called together other mediums and the media will flock once they get a whiff of something suspicious going on so I don’t want to get involved if I can help it.”

“So you would dump it on someone else?” Allura asked sarcastically and Pidge shot her a furious look.

“If you are not interested, do you think I’d care if you left right now?” the boss said.

At that moment the door opened with a bang and two people entered the room. One of them was a young girl with long blond hair, braided into two pigtails and a tall man with light brown hair.

“Oh why are you so rude little Pidgeotto?!” the girl screamed in a high-pitched voice and came running to our boss. She took Pidge in her arms and hugged her tightly ”Why can’t you be more friendly??” her accent was really funny.

We all looked shocked at the interaction, except Shiro who got up to shake hands with the other man.

“Yes, nice to see you too Romelle, now if you could let me breathe!” after she escaped the embrace, Pidge remade her composure. “Everyone this is Romelle, the one who will stand in my place for this case.” The girl in question waved excitedly and shook our hands. We were all still shocked at the familiarity between the two girls.” And he is Adam Williams, he will also assist with the case.” The man silently smiled” I apologize for Pidge’s words. She hates to make a big show of things...she’s refused cases similar to this one in the past, but she’s taking this on as a favour to me.”

Oh… now I see. This two people must be some of Pidge’s acquaintances.

“But, Pidge, what will your role be?” I asked confused. If this Romelle was the new boss, then what about Pidge?

“This time I’m just a mere investigator…”

“So who’s our client?” Coran asked, being the first one to get over the shock of the past few minutes. Pidge took out a newspaper and put it on the table, pointing at the face on the front of the cover.” The client is the ex-prime minister -Sendak Eberle.” This was the next shock on today’s list.

~

Everyone left after getting the case details. We were to leave the next day after preparations were over. Pidge wanted to get this case over with and I could see the discomfort on her face. I still had some paperwork to do, so I was stuck at my table. Shiro left with Adam and Pidge returned to her cave and I was left alone with Romelle, who was enjoying a cup of tea.

“So you must be Lance McClain, Pidge’s new assistant,” she said, starting a conversation.

“I can’t say new, I’ve been working with her for almost a year”

Romelle smiled kindly. ”You know…Pidge never took an assistant beside Shiro, who helped her at her past cases...”

Really? Wow…

“Have you known Pidge for a long time?”

“Oh…we are childhood friends! Even if I’m a little bit older, I was always a family friend!”

“You’re older than us? I really couldn’t tell”

Romelle laughed shortly. ”I know I don’t look that old, but I’m already in my third year at university. I study Parapshycology to become a researcher just like Pidgeotto!”

“If you are going to gossip my personal life I suggest you say goodbye to your paycheck, Lance,” Pidge said, coming out of her room. ”And Romelle, the office is not a café.”

“Oh don’t get mad, love! I was just leaving!” Romelle sat up and took her bag. ” I still want to visit the city because I haven’t been here in such a long time! Goodbye Lance, it was a pleasure talking with you!”

The girl left and Pidge let out a big sigh. “Lance, tea!”

I watched as she went back to her cave and prepared a cup of tea. I swear I would poison her one day!

~

The next day we were standing in front of the biggest mansion I have ever seen. It was more like a castle. It must have had over 50 rooms. Who lives in this kind of place?

We were led inside and a tall middle-aged man greeted us. "Welcome and thank you for coming. My name is Albert Kaitz. I will grant you full authority on this case. Please consider me as a representative of the client and ask me any questions. Now, if you could please tell me which one of you is the president?”

Romelle took a step forward and smiled. "That would be me, I’m the president, Pidge Gunderson,” she shook the man’s hand. She really was very professional, very different from yesterday's experience.

“I heard you were extremely young,” Mister Kaitz said and then turned to the rest of us.

Romelle took the lead and she introduced everyone. "These are all psychics who are also close acquaintances of mine. I had asked for their cooperation on this case. This is Coran Smythe, Allura Brooks and Hunk Garret.” Then she turned to us.” And these are my assistants, Lance McClain, Takashi Shirogane and Sammy Jones.”

After introductions were over, Mister Kaitz lead us down the big hallway to a large room. The house was giving me the creeps. I felt very strange and the fear in my chest was rising. At the entrance, I also smelled something odd.

We entered a chamber which resembled a dining room. There were also other people there, including Keith, who was also asked to cooperate on this case by the owner. Romelle, Pidge and Shiro sat down at the table with the other people, and we were led to some sofas near it.

Mister Kaitz sat at the head of the table and started speaking” To begin, I would like to introduce everyone whom I asked to come. Miss Pidge Gunderson of ‘Gunderson Psychic Research’ and her assistants, Chief Ryner Wagner from The Institute of Psychology of Olkari and her assistant Lara Meyer, Keith Kogane a famous medium, Reimei Minami, president of the Minami Psychic Research centre and his assistant Hideo Tamaki and their observer Doctor Kathrine Holt of the British Society for Psychic Research”

No way... really? We all looked shocked at the woman in question. She was almost in her mid-forties, with long brown hair, a scary face and an air of superiority around her. That’s Doctor Holt? She’s the legend among those who possess PK and ESP powers?

I looked at Coran, who had his mouth hanging open. From the way he talked about her every time, I’d have said he is her biggest fan.” Unbelievable… to be in the same room with her is truly amazing…” he whispered. I turned my gaze to Pidge, who had her face void of emotion. She didn’t look very pleased to meet the Doctor.

Mister Kaitz continued speaking ”During the course of your investigations on our behalf, you may stay here and you may retire to your quarters, but we cannot permit you to leave the premises. We ask that you please respect these conditions.”

~

After the presentation, we got our own base and started unpacking the equipment. In the base, Pidge became the boss again, giving orders left and right.

Hunk and I were setting up the TVs.

“Can you believe we’re actually working on the same case as Doctor Holt?” Hunk exclaimed.

“Is she your idol as well?”

Hunk blushed. ”Yeah, I mean she is totally amazing if you think about It! To have such an amazing influence over a field without showing your face? I mean nobody knows almost anything about her personal life! It’s truly extraordinary! And now, to finally meet her…”

“I don’t know, I don’t get the best feeling from her…” I whispered. “Coran seems to be the happiest,” I said glancing at the monk.

“She’s such a meticulous researcher! She writes her theses like they were regular scientific theses!” Coran exclaimed. “There’s this book, ‘Supernatural Systems’ that she wrote, which has a very interesting preface: _’I think we should conduct our research in such a way that supernatural research will be acknowledged as a science’_ , in other words, studying the supernatural in a scientific manner. This approach has never been seen before!”

Allura looked overwhelmed by her uncle’s words. "But why didn’t she say anything at the presentation?”

“Hm...you’re right. I thought it was a bit odd too, for the doctor to be so quiet…I mean, she surely dealt with other young psychics and cases like this before…” Hunk remarked. ”From what I’ve heard, she earned her degree at the Londenberg Foundation. Even among international foundations devoted to psychic research, this one has been notable for its aggressive research program. It created a special degree for its most accomplished researcher. The winning one is also rewarded a university lecture position!”

“So it’s a bit different than an ordinary doctorate?” Allura inquired and Hunk nodded. ”That’s why there was such a fuss over her appearance…”

“Even so, she is just amazing! Just some time ago, she did a PK experiment where she smashed a huge aluminium block against a wall! I dream to see that video, even if it's available only in a close circle in the field! Also, one time, she found an American millionaire’s kidnapped son using clairvoyance! He was buried alive!”

While Coran was fangirling again over Doctor Holt and her _amazingness_ , Mister Kaitz entered the room with a smile. ”You have really remarkable equipment…Are you sure this room will be sufficient?”

Romelle nodded. ”Yes, it will, thank you. Would you mind answering a few questions, Mister Kaitz?”

“Absolutely, feel free to ask me anything”

“Thank you very much, let’s begin…Sammy would you mind?”

Pidge turned ”Yes ma'am. Please, can you confirm the details of this case?”

Mister Kaitz nodded.

“We know it was the prime minister’s wife’s grandfather who originally erected this building, but apparently he was the only one to here, and no one else, or so we’re told. Rumour has it that a spirit appeared. As time passed, it was forgotten… but then two months ago, a boy vanished from here. Some local juveniles broke in since the building looks vacant. By then, the mansion’s structure had become convoluted and unsafe. The police and local authorities searched the premises, but the boy was never found. During the search, a young firefighter also vanished, then several people claim to have seen humanoid apparitions in the mansion. Even before this, it was reported that during renovations, workers had also disappeared. The former head of the family supposedly wrote in his will: _’ They gave their all for this mansion, and it’s here they shall remain until they rot_...’”

Mister Kaitz nodded, confirming Pidge’s words. ”To prevent further incidents, the prime minister had called upon psychs to resolve this mystery.”

“I see…We can see this is a very old building, but do you know the exact year it was built? We heard that construction started around the year 1860, right?”

“Yes. This building is said to have been renovated so much, that hardly anything remains of the original structure. It seems that the prime minister’s wife’ grandfather has done some sort of renovation every year since his father built it.”

“ Why every year even if nobody lives here…? Can you tell us something about the man?”

“His name was Zarkon Kalpan. He owned a large plot of land in this region and he built a silk-spinning factory and then eventually devoted himself to philanthropy. I heard he built orphanages and charity hospitals. Then, when the financial panic hit in 1910, he lost much of his business and had to shut down all his interests. He passed away three years later. He was the only one who lived here.”

“I see…do you have the house blueprints on hand?”

“I’m afraid not, unfortunately, but I’ll inquire if you’d like.”

“Thank you very much,” Pidge said, deep in thought.

“Doesn’t this feel like the proverbial ‘haunted mansion’?” Allura asked when Mister Kaitz left.

“Agreed – an old western-style mansion with a lot of history…What do you think Pidge?” Coran turned to the girl.

“Something’s not right…a haunted mansion, abandoned for years…a convoluted building with no blueprints…We need to stay here overnight. Lance?”

“Yes, boss!”

“For now, set the thermal sensors in as many rooms as possible. After dark, no one should wander through the house alone. Allura, I want you so make some protective charms for everyone and for each of the room we’ll be staying in.”

“Got it!”

Before I left, I glanced over at Keith, who had joined us. He was looking out the window, deep in thought. "What’s wrong? You look a little bit pale.”

Keith turned his eyes to me.”I’ve felt anxiety ever since I’ve entered this house…There’s the scent of blood here…”

Huh…I also did smell it at the entrance, but I thought I was just imagining things…

~

Coran, me and Romelle left to take temperature readings. The mansion was very strange. The deeper we went, the more unusual it got. Doors and windows were going nowhere or simply pit in inaccessible places, rooms inside rooms and hallways without end. It was like a maze!

“This is so surreal…it feels like we’re in a painting!” Coran said, looking around surprised.

We opened a door to arrive in another hallway.

“I feel like a lost child…”

“What a strange house…all these random corridors that lead nowhere…” Romelle said, gazing around.

I noted down the temperatures and we moved forward. After completing the rooms in this part of the house we decided to go back to base, which was very hard because it was easy to get lost here.

“It’s just like the Winchester House,” Romelle declared.

“Huh?”

“It’s this convoluted ‘mystery house’…There was a legend that claimed that misfortune would befall the owner once she’d finished building the house, so she just never stopped renovating it…”

We got back to base, where I gave Pidge the readings. Allura entered the room, after going with Keith around the mansion putting charms.

“We’ve met with Mister Minami on our way. I really think this guy is very sketchy!” she declared, sitting down near her uncle. "I have a feeling we can’t trust him!”

Pidge looked at the priest and smirked. ”For now, we’ll keep our distance. We’ll have to set up the night vision cameras where we’ll be sleeping and then we’ll have to create a floorplan as exact as possible.”Shiro, go with Lance and Keith and measure every room. Everyone else will set up more charms and adjust the equipment. We don’t have a lot of time until dawn…”

~

When night came, we all went to sleep in the rooms near the base. Because Pidge didn’t want to separate us by a lot, she asked Mister Kaitz for two bedrooms, one for girls and one for the boys. She, Romelle and Allura were sharing one and the rest of us in another one.

It was hard for me to fall asleep because I started smelling that awful scent again. It was becoming unbearable. I could see Keith was also moving around in his bed. That night I had that sinister dream again…Is it related to the case?

When morning came, we went back to hard work. Our priority was to create the blueprint of the house, but we had some problems with it.

“The measurements are off somewhere,” I told Keith and Hunk while we were measuring the fifth room of the day. ”According to the measurements taken from outside, this room should be rectangular, but from inside it’s clear that it’s a square.”

“Oh…not again!” sighed Keith, who was fed up. ”We’ve already measured this several times. We even double-checked! What’s wrong with this house!?”

“This must be the centre of the house…” Hunk suggested.

When we returned to base with all the measurements, Shiro tried to put them all together to form a _floorplan_. We counted around 106 rooms. Which was way more then I expected!

“There is something that doesn’t match…” Pidge declared, examining the plan.

“We measured it properly, I swear!” I exclaimed, not wanting to hear anything about mistakes.”Maybe there are secret rooms…?”

Pidge shot me a surprised look.” This is a troubling possibility…We’ll have to retake the measurements tomorrow again…”

Oh, no way!

~

At dinner, we all sat in silence, eating in the base, when the door opened and an elderly woman appeared. It was Chief Ryner. She approached Romelle, who bowed slightly.

“Excuse me for interrupting you while dining,” she said in a warm voice.

“It’s no problem, don’t worry!” Romelle smiled.

“I have a favour to ask, and you don’t appear to be shady like certain other mediums…I’d like to conduct a séance tonight and I was hoping you and the others would assist me if you can, Miss Gunderson?”

Romelle shot a look to Pidge, who nodded silently. ”Yes, we would like to participate too.”

“Perfect! I’ll be waiting with my assistant in the room next door at 9 o’clock” the woman said and left.

~

When 9 o’clock came, we all gathered in Mrs Ryner’s base for the séance. The chief welcomed us and Romelle sat at the table alongside Mister Minami, Doctor Holt, Mrs Ryner and her assistant Lara, holding hands. Lara was going to write somethings down. Pidge sat up a camera and a single candle was light, leaving us in darkness. The séance began.

“Please take a deep breath and call upon the spirits living in this mansion…To those living here, please possess this woman’s hand and reveal your souls…I implore you to reveal yourself…Please let us hear what is in your souls…” Mrs Ryner whispered and we all listened carefully. Even if we were not sitting at the table, we could hear her. I was starting to get a bit cold…

Suddenly Keith looked at the table with a piercing gaze. The woman’s hand started writing frantically page after page, with such speed I’ve never seen before. The candle was flickering uncontrollably and the room became freezing cold. Rapping sounds began and the rooms started shaking.

W-What’s going on?

When the shaking stopped, Pidge turned the lights on. The room was a mess. Papers were everywhere scattered around the floor and on the table. Mister Minami was under the table, trembling in fear.

We started gathering the papers to read the words. On each and everyone one of them, written in black ink was a single word: ‘HELP’

While looking around, something caught my eye. Under another pile of 'HELPS', there was a single paper written in red: ‘ I DON’T WANT TO DIE’

Shiro, who was monitoring the video and temperature during the séance, stepped into the room with a laptop. ”About the same time the rapping sounds began, the temperature started dropping. Beginning near the ceiling, it gradually, and eventually dropped three degrees across the entire room.”

Pidge was looking at the video. ”Stop the video and rewind it 50 seconds, going frame by frame.” We all silently looked at a single blank paper fell near the foot of the table. When it touched the ground, the red words appeared.

What the hell? There was nothing written there just one frame before!

At that moment, Keith fell on the floor ”I don’t feel very good…can I go back to my room..?”

Pidge nodded. ”Lance, Hunk, go with him. I think we’ll be over for tonight.”

The three of us left, caring a nauseous Keith on our shoulders. In the room, Hunk gave him a pill and a glass of water.

Keith was starting to gain his colour back. ”Back there… the smell of blood was so strong I was about to vomit…Did you feel it too?” he asked, looking at me.

“No... I just fell the room become so cold, I swear I could have frozen there! Did you see any spirits?”

“Yes…but only a flickering glimpse, so I didn’t see it well. I was too distracted by the scent of blood…”

We all went to sleep without any more incidents for the night.


	21. Chapter 21

The next day, when entering the base, I was met with a heartbreaking view. Mrs Ryner was crying at the table, asking anyone if they have seen her assistant, Miss Lara.

“What’s wrong?” I asked Keith, who was sitting next to the door.

“Lara disappeared last night…”

What?

Romelle was trying to comfort the devastated woman. “Can you tell us what happened?”

“When I woke up this morning, she was gone…but she was definitely sleeping when I woke up once around dawn… She couldn’t have left – her luggage is still here…”

“By ‘dawn’ what do you mean?” asked Pidge.

“I don’t know… maybe 5 o’clock? Then I fell asleep and woke up at 7 o’clock.”

Romelle looked at her watch. “It’s ten now, so she hasn’t been seen for at least three hours…”

“Mister Kaitz said that the front door was still locked and he questioned all the employees, yet nobody has seen her…” the woman continued, burying her head in her hands.

“She may have gotten lost somewhere. Let’s search the premises first,” Romelle declared and we all parted to look for the missing assistant.

~

After hours of searching for the missing assistant, we found nothing. Mrs Ryner was trying very hard to keep her composure. With every passing hour, we were further away from solving this case.

When we returned to base, Mr Minami was already there.

“I just heard! What a terrible thing to have happened!” he exclaimed but his voice didn’t sound compassionate. What a sketchy guy…

Mrs Ryner looked at him with hopeful eyes. “Could you ask Dr Holt?” she asked, taking out a little object from her pocket. “This is Lara’s contact lens case. Would she perform a psychometric reading on it? Please, I beg you!”

The man took the case and gave it to the doctor. She closed her eyes and after a few seconds opened them and gave a negative answer. ”I can’t sense anything from them…”

Mrs Ryner started crying and we all looked shocked. Did that mean that Lara was already dead? Or…

I glanced at Pidge, who shook her head silently.

The doctor continued, not looking at us. “Maybe she was so scared by the séance and fled back home?”

How insensitive could this woman be? It was clear: I hated Katherine Holt.

“That’s probably it… she’ll call me later…I’m sure of it,” Mrs Ryner said and walked silently out of the room.

~

We continued our search around the house. There were so many rooms to cover that we felt overwhelmed.

Hunk, Romelle and I were the first to leave the base to continue the search in the left-wing, while Coran, Keith and Allura went on the other side. Pidge and Shiro stayed back to watch the tapes from last night.

“Where could she have vanished to? There is no sign of her anywhere…” Romelle remarked as we entered another room.

“We might disappear too…” Hunk whispered trembling.

“Don’t say that, please!” I shot him a furious look. Now I was beginning to feel uneasy myself…

“Huh? Guys, I think I found something!” Romelle exclaimed, pointing at the floor. We followed the direction to find a little door in the floor. Hunk opened it and inside we found some stairs. A secret room??

We returned to base with news for Pidge. Inside the room, we found an old lab coat and nothing else.

Pidge looked at the piece of clothing, examining it on all sides. “Galra Charity Hospital.. This must be from one of Zarkon’s hospitals…There’s something in the inner pocket,” she said, taking out a very old bill. “There is something written here…”

Coran took the bill from her hands and examined it. “It’s in old Altean, but I can’t recognize all the characters. Give me some time and I’ll try to decipher it…”

Pidge nodded.” While you were out, MrsRyner came by. She said she called Lara’s home, but she wasn’t there”

Oh no… This case was becoming more sinister then I thought. Were we in danger?

~

Night came and we all returned to the base, trying to go over the floor plans and measurements again – we were trying to see if there are any more secret rooms that didn’t end up on the plan.

Suddenly someone tapped the window.

“Finally…” Pidge whispered and got up to open the window. Adam appeared in our view, a big smile on his face.

“Hello everyone!” he said, jumping through the window in the room.” I thought I’d come over to give you the results of my investigation”

“That was dangerous. What if something had happened?” Shiro said, looking a bit annoyed.

“Then you’ll be there to save me, right?” Adam winked and put his bag on the table.” I found some really interesting information! Starting with Miss Lara - I checked with all the buses and taxis in the area and none of the drivers remembered a rider matching her description. We can’t rule out hitchhiking, but of course, this is assuming she was able to leave the mansion.”

“Anything on the persons who vanished earlier?” Pidge asked, looking over the papers.

“The first to disappear was Hideki Matsunuma, an unemployed 18-year-old. On the night of November 13th, he came here with some friends- this is where they lost touch. While they were partying in one of the rooms, he just staggered out and never returned. When they filed a missing person report, police and volunteers searched but they couldn’t found any trace of him. When they were preparing to leave is when they discovered the second missing person, one of their own searchers.”

“Any details about him?”

“He was a 21-year-old firefighter.”

Pidge nodded and took out one of the pages from the files.

“That is a brief history of Sir Zarkon and his family…”

~

That night I had such a strange dream. I saw one of Mister Minami’s assistant walking through the rooms of the house in complete darkness. I had a bad feeling about this.

“Stop – don’t go there!”

I woke up from a bang on the door. Shiro rushed to the bedroom door and opened it to find Mr Minami at the doorway “Have you seen Hideo?” We’ve been searching for him for two hours but we can’t find him!”

No…this can’t be…

What’s this house?

~

We all gathered into the main room, alongside Mrs Ryner and the remaining psychics.

“Is there a reason you haven’t asked Doctor Holt to so something? She had helped others in situations just like this…” Mrs Ryner remarked, glaring furiously at the man “Isn’t this an emergency? Your own assistant has gone missing and she hasn’t lifted a finger! Maybe it’s all a lie!”

Mrs Minami was boiling,” How could you insult us like this? Fine, we’ll solve this case ourselves!”

They left the room and shut the door behind them.

“The fact is, we don’t really have proof that the doctor is for real…” Allura whispered. “We only have Mister Minami's words…”

“Allura is right. If that woman really has such amazing powers why hasn’t she showed them even once!” I declared. No matter how you looked at it, this woman was simply an impostor.

“Less talking more working!” Pidge said, shaking her head and looking at the map in front of her. ”Something is off about the stairs so we should check them again.”

“What do you mean?”

“I noticed this morning that the number of steps in each staircase is different. At first glance, you see eight steps in the staircase. Eight steps going up, eight steps going down, but looking on the measurements there are actually more steps going up than down. So, instead of one floor, there may be two small ones, built within it. In other words, if we go just one floor down, there should be another room…”

So we all left to look around the staircase for the secret room. I never thought Pidge had such a trained eye…she always saw the little details in everything, amazing us with her clever remarks. She really was remarkable.

My thoughts were interrupted by Hunk, who was crunched down on the floor, trying to open up a thing in the wall. “I’ve found it!”

Romelle was the only one small enough to fit through from the three of us, so she jumped in.

“What do you see?”

“There’s a small bedroom, full of dust…Oh god…I think I found something!”

~

We returned to base with a big portrait. Pidge was examining it, turning it on all its parts “1910…Self-portrait of Urado…Who is this Urado…?”

“Well it looks pretty expensive so maybe it’s a painting of Zarkon or one of his sons?”

Suddenly, Coran’s eyes flickered and he took out the old bill from his pocket “Ura- this character is Ura and that translate to: _’ Those who came here are all dying … Get out…’_ There is also URADO in capitals”

A shiver rand down my spine. What had happened here?

At that moment, someone tapped on the window, scaring us. It must be Adam!

“Did I tell you to come back?” Pidge asked annoyed.

“Oh, I knew I was in no danger so I came! I’m not an idiot!” Not in danger?? It was the middle of the night near a cursed mansion!

“No danger?” It looked like Shiro had the same thoughts as me.

“In front of the mansion, there’s a playground, where kids used to play soccer and basketball in. But as you might expect, since November's disappearances, they’ve stopped coming. Even so, none of them went missing before, so in other words, the danger is only inside! The outside is safe!” Adam exclaimed, proud of his remarks.

That made sense…

“Anyways, I dug up a little about this Zarkon. It seems he was a fastidious man. Apparently, there was an incident long ago in which one of the silk spinning workers was caught falsifying his wages. At first, Zarkon only fired the worker, but his oldest son also worked in that factory and his other son in the hospital and the house they lived in was owned by the boss. He ended up forcing them all to move and he fired them all…”

“He was really ruthless…” Romelle whispered.

“Yes…it all turned into a big scandal. Furthermore, he had a lot of servants, but they all came to work from a different region. He retreated to this mountain villa to avoid contact with people. So, since he kept almost everyone away, rumours spread that suspicious activity was happening in this mansion…” Adam continued.

“Do you happen to know something about a man named Urado?” Corans asked.

Adam nodded,” Urado was Zarkon’s penname. He was a real eccentric…”

~

That night I went to bed feeling uneasy. I couldn’t shake the feeling that something much more awful was happening in this mansion…

Suddenly I felt like I couldn’t move- I was paralyzed. What was happening? I tried to look around, but everyone was sleeping peacefully. I couldn’t open my mouth so I stayed with my eyes glued to the door. I heard a loud click and the door opened and two men clouded in darkness. They took me by the arms and I was dragged out of the chambers, down the hallway, trying to scream my lungs out and yet no words could come out. Was this a dream?

I was dragged and I tried to remember the path they took. We entered a room I’ve never seen before and then a small dark maze. Are we outside?

I tried to wake up, forcing myself out of this dream, but nothing seemed to work.

Was I going to die? Was this the end?

The smell of blood seemed to be stronger than before and I was dragged into a dark medical room it started to get unbearable. The men stripped me to a cold table in an operation room – there was blood everywhere.

Someone grabbed my hair forcefully and I was dragged down, my neck exposed. No Please- I don’t want to die!

I saw the knife come down straight to my neck.

No- Stop! I DON’T WANT TO DIE!

~

I woke screaming of pain. I felt that knife go right through me!

Shiro, Keith, Hunk and Coran were all gathered around my bed, looking at me worriedly. I felt tears in my eyes. My heart was beating so fast that I swore it was about to leave my body…

Shiro sat near me and tried to comfort me. “Are you ok?” I hugged him closely, trying to forget that awful dream.

I heard the door opening and for a second I thought the two men were going to enter and take me away, but instead, Romelle and Allura entered, dressed in their pyjamas. It seems I woke them up too.

I gathered the courage to speak. “I had a terrifying dream…Two men came in… and they dragged me to a room covered in strange tiles, drenched in blood. They put me on an operating table and tied me to it…They cut my throat with a large knife…I just dreamed that I was murdered…blood started to –“

“That’s enough, don’t try to remember anymore…” Shiro said, still having his arms around me.

The door opened once again and Pidge entered with a cup of tea.

Did she just make tea in the middle of the night for me?

“Are you alright?” she asked in a calm voice. I suddenly felt more relaxed. Her presence made me at ease and I accepted the cup of tea, trying to forget about my own murder.

~

When morning came, we were back to work. Shiro suggested I take a break, but I wanted to finish this case faster so we could leave this forsaken place.

We still needed to gather data about the secret rooms, in order to find the two missing people.

Romelle was talking to me about the dream I had, noting down any details that I could remember.

“Is something wrong?” I asked, noticing she was in deep thought.

“About Lara or Hideo…isn’t one of them already dead?”

“What?”

“Because…assuming one of them died, you felt the experience of their death as if it were your own. I heard you had this kind of dreams before, so supposing you experience the past, I can firmly say what you saw happened to one of the victims…”

What kind of death is this…?

“We’ve only been here for four days and two people have vanished. This is too odd… However, no one directly connected to this mansion has disappeared…”

“Could it be that the staff working here are homicidal maniacs?” Hunk asked, entering our conversation.

“This sounds like a plot of a movie, so I don’t think so,” Romelle shook her head “There is something that doesn't add up. Only outsiders have disappeared, but this can’t be the only thing they had in common…”

“Perhaps the staff hasn’t been affected is because they are pretty old…maybe the ghosts here only want young people…” Hunk whispered and all the pieces fell together.

This theory was the one that made the most sense. All the people that disappeared were pretty young, no older than 20. If that was the case, then most of us were in danger…

Pidge looked up from her notes to hear Hunk’s theory. “If that’s the case, Lance and Romelle, you two must never be alone…”

What? But we are not the only ones that are young?

Pidge continued before I could comment.” You are the only ones without proper ways to protect yourselves,” she then turned to Allura. “How much can we depend on you?”

“I can make counterspells and charms enough for everyone…”

“Good. Allura will stay all the time with Keith. He is a medium so he knows a thing or two about how to protect himself. Coran and Hunk, you’ll stay with Romelle. Because Hunk is 19 and Romelle 21, you’ll need all the power necessary to protect both of you. Shiro, I trust you enough to stay with Lance…”

The teams sound good…but... “What about you Pidge?”

That’s right, Pidge is only a researcher, she can’t use any counterspells as well.

“I’ll think of something,” she said indifferently.

“This is not a solution. Hunk, please protect Lance and Coran stay with Romelle.”

“We can’t let Hunk and Lance alone!” Pidge snapped, “Even if Hunk is a priest, his power alone is not enough to protect both of them!”

“Then send someone home! We can’t leave you by yourself!” Shiro said back, annoyed “If something were to happen to you, how could I explain this to the professor?! Think about how would your parents feel!”

The professor? Who’s that? This was the first time I’ve seen Shiro actually being furious and it was also the first time I’ve heard something about Pidge’s parents. This was getting interesting.

Pidge shot him an annoyed look. “If you’re not satisfied with my leadership, feel free to leave!”

“You seem to forget that I’m here to protect you at all costs. Don’t try to push me away, child!”

Protect? Was Shiro her bodyguard or what?

Suddenly Romelle interviewed between the two. “Calm down now, don’t need to shout. I’ll leave and there should be no problems. I’ll assist Adam in his research!” she said, trying to diminish the tension that had raised in the room.

~

We watched Romelle leave and we got back to work. No one dared to say another word about the recent dispute between Pidge and Shiro, so everyone went back to work in their assigned groups.

For now, we were looking over the maps again.

“The mansion was constructed with a high middle section. The first floor’s foundation actually inlines upward in the middle,” Shiro remarked. ”The mansion had this shape from the beginning. It seems to be built to look huge from the outside by its arrangement of windows, even though the middle section’s room is as small as those in a smaller building… So I suppose there is some empty space there.

“What if that space is not empty, but instead a sealed-off room?” Pidge suggested “We tried to find a secret passage-way into it. If there is one in this old mansion and the people who disappeared used it, couldn’t we expect to see disturbed dust, footprints and such? There hasn’t been any trace of this, so there must be a sealed-off room that is hiding our answers...”

“Maybe there is the room that Lance saw in his dream!” Keith declared.

“That must be it. If we try inspecting the walls next to it, we’ll know.”

Now we only had to find a way to walk through walls!

By night Romelle and Adam came to visit again through the window.

“Today was so productive!” The girl exclaimed, clapping her hands. “I came with the brilliant idea to count the chimneys! When we measured the room, we came across 10 fireplaces, but if you look from outside the house, there are actually 11! And the odd one out is actually circular, while the others are all rectangular!”

Interesting…then that chimney must be from the sealed off room!

“We also asked around about this Zarkon character,” Adam said, giving us some papers. “Some old neighbours told us that he was known by their parents as being very eccentric and hateful towards everyone. He would chase people around and he did terrible things to the locals. Apparently, he was physically weak when he was young. Since childhood, he’d been told that he wouldn’t live very long and he often meandered abroad…Supposedly he was just sightseeing, but people say he was actually visiting foreign doctors. After that, Zarkon moved here, but he was always accompanied by two servants. They did everything here at that time. I heard they apparently made a labyrinth out of plants…”

Two men…labyrinth…I suddenly felt sick…my dream

“The maze supposedly covered the gap between the main wing and cottage… whenever people came here, they experienced strange nauseating feelings. There was this strange smell in that cottage and no one dared to go near it. Moreover, there were always new faces among the maids who came here…”

I couldn't hear this story anymore…

Suddenly I felt Keith’s hand on my shoulder. “You don’t need to be afraid anymore. Nothing bad will happen…” he tried comforting me with a small smile.

At that moment, the room began to shake violently. The light was cut off and I grabbed Keith in order to steady myself. What was happening?

When the light turned on again, the walls were covered In bloody words:’ HELP!’,’ I'M SCARED’,’ RUN’,’ URADO’.

What the hell was this?

~

After the incident, Adam and Romelle left and Mr Kaitz came to check on us. It seemed that the rest of the house was also covered in words.

We all stayed in the base, trying to make sense of the situation.

“Keith, do you feel up to performing a séance?” Pidge asked, going over the actions.

“Hey, wait a minute! Do you want to let a spirit possess Keith? Remember what happened to Lara after she did that!”

“Lance… “ Keith tried to stop me, but I got a strange feeling I needed to stood beside him.

“We can’t let him do it! He’ll go through the same disturbing things I went through in my dream!”

“Lance, Keith is a professional. He is prepared for this kind of situations…”

“Pro or not, no one should have to experience that!”I felt my voice rising.

“Lance!” Pidge was giving me a nasty look and I lost it.

“Do you know what it feels like to die, Pidge? Can you imagine the moment you die? You can’t because you’re no spiritualist! You don’t know what we went through!” I screamed at her.

She looked at me with empty eyes and for a moment I thought I saw a hint of sadness, as if I had offended her…

“Fine. It can’t be helped. I know there is no guarantee with this method, but Shiro, will you invoke the spirits? He won’t be possessed by them, so you have nothing to worry about, Lance,” she spitted my name with such venom.

Yep, I definitely offended her. Great job, Lance!

Shiro nodded silently. “I can’t invoke the spirits of those killed here in the past. The only ones I can access is Lara or Hideo, as long as we presume they are dead.”

“That’ll do. Let’s try it. Let’s set the cameras…”

I looked as everyone started preparing and I glanced one last time at Pidge.

That look I saw on her face for just a moment…it was the worst feeling ever…

~

We set the cameras in the same room as the last séance. According to Coran, this wasn’t going to be like the last time, as Shiro was no medium. He would instead try to invoke the spirit in front of us. He said that this was a form of spirit invocation that originated as a method of enchantment in China which was called Shoukon. To do this practice, someone would need the name, the birth date and the death day.

Shiro sat a table, on which he put some candles, essence and a sword, all of them part of the incantation.

Pidge gave him Lara’s profile with all the information and he began. We watched silently as he began the process, lighting up the candles and holding onto the sword. He started whispering something that sounded like flute….such a mesmerizing sound. Was he whistling?

The candles’ lights began to flicker like the wind was blowing into them. Suddenly, a human figure formed in front of us. It was Lara! So that meant that she really did die...

Pidge took a step forward. ” Besides you…is there anyone else in this house? Besides us and the mediums, is there anyone living here?”

The ghost slowly nodded.

“You and the others have already died, did you know that?” continued Pidge in a calm voice.

For a second Lara’s face stopped, looking at us terrified.

She didn’t even know about her own death…

“Did someone do something horrible to you?”

Another nod.

“Who was that? Was it someone besides the ones working on this case and in this house?... Urado, do you know that name?”

The ghost started trembling strangely, looking at us in shock.

“Do you know him?” Pidge persisted.

Lara’s hand went to her neck and she opened her mouth to say something, but no sound came out. She became nervous, struggling to keep cool.

“Pidge, I’ve reached the limit…we don’t have enough time…” Shiro whispered and we all watched as the ghost of the deceased girl disappeared.

Pidge turned on the lights and we all looked at the opposite wall in sock. On it, written in blood was a single word:” VURADO”


	22. Chapter 22

“What does Vurado mean? Is Urado actually Vurado?” Allura asked, examining the writing on the wall.

“Vurado sounds like a name…”

“It’s the Vampire Dracula, Vlad Tepes…” Pidge said.

“What?”

“Vurado is an old Altean version of the name Vlad. It sounds the same as the Japanese pronunciation,” she continued “Zarkon probably got the inspiration from the name of the Romanian ruler…”

“But he wasn’t a vampire, right? Maybe the spirits here are the dead people whose blood he drank!?” I screamed.

“Calm down Lance, vampires don’t exist. They are just fairytales to scare children…”

Did you just compare me to a child?

“Dracula’s image as a vampire came from a novel written by Bram Stoker. The writer was inspired by the story of Vlad Tepes. He was a king who ruled the region of Wallachia, Romania in our days, in eastern Europe during the 15th century. He had a fastidious, yet cruel personality. He was called “the impaler” for mercilessly executing and impaling citizens who lied or stole and enemies who invaded his country…”

“How did he become Dracula?”

“Vlad’s father was called ‘Vlad Dracul’, the word ‘Dracul’ meaning dragon or devil. So Dracula means Devil’s child. I presume that when Zarkon travelled abroad, he came across the book, which had been published by that time…”

So he might have got inspiration from that novel…

“Vlad Tepes is often associated with a Hungarian Countess named Elizabeth Bathory, even if they didn’t even live in the same century. She feared the deterioration of her beauty, so she murdered young girls and took long baths in their blood…She believed that by doing that she would preserve her beauty and youth. It’s very likely that Zarkon knew both of these stories. I think he couldn’t stand the poor health of his body, so he tried to use the blood of young people to preserve his health, just like Elizabeth did….”

We all remained silent. This was horrible! A madman inspired by a merciless ruler and a crazy countess.

“Then the words on the bill… they tried to warn others…” Hunk whispered.

“But why the medical cloth…Unless –“

It all fell into pieces.

“He used the children from the orphanage and the people from the hospital to complete his sick imagination…” Pidge was the only one to gain the courage to say it out loud.

I couldn't believe it… he murdered people just because he wanted to save himself…!

“So, you think that his children knew about this?”

“Probably. They continued to build around the house, trying to seal the room. He hid deep in the heart of the mansion…”

“But Zarkon is dead, so why are people still disappearing?”

“Maybe it’s actually possible that he figured out the secret to a longer life and that concerns me. By killing others, he brings life to himself…and as a result, he is still here. Urado is still here, hunting for sacrifices…”

~

We started looking for the supposedly secret room. Using the map, we tried to pinpoint the place where the round chimney should be. Armed with shovels, Pidge put us to break the walls.

Using a strange device, Shiro told us where the wall was the weakest and we started hitting it. After minutes of hard work, the wall finally broke and we went inside a dark hallway. Pidge was the first to go through with a flashlight, and we followed her.

“What’s this hideous smell…?” whispered Coran.

We entered a room whose windows were blocked by brick walls. Was this the original house…?

Inside the room there was an incinerator and Pidge approached it cautiously as we looked around the dusty room.

“We have to call the police…” she whispered, her gaze coming up from inside the incinerator “There are corpses here…”

~

After discovering two bodies, we returned to base to announce Mister Kaitz, who called the police worriedly. According to Pidge, they should have been the first two who disappeared: the teenager and the fireman.

Mister Kaitz gathered everyone in the main dining room to tell the others the news.

“Besides the two missing persons from months ago, I don’t think there’s really much hope for the survival of the others…”

“Then Lara…you’re saying she’s dead…”

“Not just Lara, but probably Hideo too…”

“Maybe they are still lost! You only found the bodies from months ago…”

“They couldn’t have lost their way into that room – it was sealed off completely. We had to break through walls to get there…”

Mister Minami looked shocked for a second, then abruptly stood up” We’re leaving. I can’t put my life in danger like this!” Doctor Holt got up as well and both of them went to the door.

“You’re not going to help search for your own assistant?” I shouted, having enough of this.

“If we could find him safe and sound sure, but what if we’re only adding ourselves to the victim list?” he said arrogantly.

Mrs Ryner turned to the doctor “Please…stay…we need your help…Use all your abilities to find them…I beg you, Doctor Holt!”

The woman looked at the crying Mrs Ryner with pity “I-I’m not her! I’m not Holt!”

What?

“My name is Elizabeth Wall and I’m not the doctor. It was all his idea!” she screamed pointing at Mister Minami. “I’m not staying a minute longer in this mansion!”

“Wait, Miss, Wait for me!” Mister Minami left as well, leaving us in complete silence.

I knew that woman was shady...

“I think you should leave as well, Mrs Ryner – this house is too dangerous. We would pull out too.” Pidge said calmly.

“No, wait…what about the missing people? You’re just going to abandon them?” I asked, shocked to hear the decision she took without even asking us.

“They’re dead. I’m not interested in finding dead people…”

How could she say such a thing?

“We searched everywhere inside the house. The reality is I don’t think the missing people could have been sealed off in that room. I don’t understand how Zarkon could have carried his victims through walls. Do you understand what kind of power is needed to do that? He’s no longer just a spirit of the departed. He became a monster, a demon or devil, however, would you like to call them. We know how to hunt ghosts, not monsters, so the clever thing to do is to back off…” she declared, looking at us gravely “I suppose none of you has the qualifications to destroy such kind of creatures…”

Everyone shook their heads. Not even Shiro, who seemed to be the most powerful among us backed off.

“He has only one weakness: He can’t leave the house. So that means even Lance can exorcise him…”

What??

“It’s easy. You just have to torch the house. He can’t escape, so he has to burn with it…”

“Why are we fleeing…” I whispered.

“We are not fleeing. Our job here is done. I didn’t come here to honour mister Kaitz’s request. I don’t think I would have taken this case for him alone- even now, it doesn’t hold my interest. I did this for Adam.”

“What?”

“He suspected that Minami Psychic Research had an imposter posing as Doctor Kathrine Holt, so he asked me to do a little investigation.” She confessed in front of us, with no hints of regret “We uncovered the truth so there’s no reason to remain here and risk our safety…”

How could she? I felt so betrayed…

“You deceitful jerk…!” I shouted in her face “You just used and lied us!”

“I just maintained strategic secrecy. There are people who can’t keep quiet.” She said eyeing me.

I couldn’t argue with her anymore.

“Let’s pack our things. We are to leave immediately!”

~

We went to our rooms to gather our things, while Coran and Shiro gathered the equipment.

Hunk sensed my sorrow “Don’t worry Lance, Pidge was right. We should leave everything to the police. They will burn the mansion and everything will be alright…”

While we were packing, Allura entered the room excitedly and put her bags down. ”I’m finished,” she exclaimed.

“We’ll be over in a couple of minutes. Pidge and Shiro are done?”

“Allura nodded, but then stopped in tracks.”I think I forgot something in my room, I’ll be right back!” and with that, she left and closed the door.

We continued packing and we were done, we went back to the base.

“Where’s Allura?” Pidge asked, eyeing us.

Suddenly Coran’s face became chalk-white, “She hasn’t come back from her room…” expecting the worst, he ran out and within minutes he came back, panting “Allura is not there.”

~

We spent almost half of the day looking for her. Adam and Romelle came too, but it was all in vain. Pidge tried to reassure us that for the time being Allura must have been alive, but seeing Coran so stressed out made us feel uneasy too.

We were back near the empty space. It seemed that the room with the incinerator was not the only thing secret there. At this moment we were trying to figure out where to start digging.

“If my measurements are correct, the surrounding rooms are concealing a separate floor. The walls haven’t deteriorated so it’s hard to tell, but there must be another floor below the first floor,” Adam remarked, looking at the map.

Shiro and Pidge were trying to find out which wall was probably concealing it and Coran was helping Adam with the measurements.

I felt out of place. My worry was growing with every passing minute and I felt overwhelmed. I sat down near Keith, who was playing with his knife.

“I feel like this is all my fault…” he whispered.

“Don’t say that…”

“I had to be always with her, yet I let her go back to her room alone…I failed,” he said and looked at the ground.

I didn’t know how to comfort him, so I remained silent. I felt my eyelids grow heavier…I shouldn’t fall asleep now…and yet…

I felt my body drifting through the darkness. The rooms and hallways began to take shape. It was that kind of dream! Maybe I could find out if Allura was okay!

I began to navigate the maze of walls, trying to find the cursed room from my previous dream. Everywhere I looked, I could see little lights floating around – the spirits of people murdered here…

Suddenly, dream Pidge appeared – this time with her long hair and green dress. She silently pointed through the darkness and a room appeared at the end of the hallway. She gave me a reassuring smile and I went through it.

I was back in the medical room. In the corner, I heard a silent cry and I made my way through the darkness.

Allura!

I ran to her, not being sure if she could see me or not. She looked up and I saw relief in her eyes.

“Lance…!” she hugged me closely.

“I’m glad you’re okay…Are you injured or something?”

“No, I’m just so tired…I tried to fight but I don’t remember what happened,” she looked up at me with sadness in her eyes “I know it’s just a dream, but seeing you here makes me feel at ease…”

“Don’t worry, we’re coming to save you”

She laughed bitterly, ”Before you came, I saw Pidge. She was there when I started dreaming. It was her but at the same time she wasn’t Pidge. Even so, she talked with me and again, I felt at ease…I’m dead, aren’t I? I died and I just don’t know it myself…”

I grabbed her shoulders, ”Allura, don’t say that…” I tried to think of something fast. “Here take this charm”, I said, handing her the key from my house. “It’s my lucky charm. It’s the key to the house where I lived long ago with my family…Have faith in yourself. Everyone is searching very hard and I promise you we’ll find a way to save you! Hold on the charm until we see each other again!”

“Lance…” she smiled and hugged me again “I’ll be waiting for everyone…”

~

I woke up screaming Allura’s name and scaring everyone, especially Coran who thought I saw her death.

“She’s alive! I’ve seen her in my dream! She’s waiting for everyone! She’s unharmed … in that room…We have to hurry!”

Everyone let a breath of relief and we went back to work. Shiro found the perfect spot in the wall and me and Hunk started digging until we could finally break it.

We all looked through the hole.

“What the hell is this? Another hallway?” Coran screamed furiously.

“It looks like an entrance. It’s a house within a house,” Pidge said, examining the perimeter with her flashlight.

We started walking cautiously down the dark corridor. This pace was giving me the creeps.

The further we went, the more obvious it became that this was indeed another separate house. The ceiling in here must have been the bottom of the first floor. There weren’t many rooms.

I opened the door in the furthest part of the hallway, revealing the cursed hedges.

“It’s through here!” I shouted to the others and we all entered the maze. Pidge and I were leading the way.

“Is this the place from your dreams?” she asked and I nodded silently.

It was the same place, the same terrifying path to the blood-soaked room.

“There’s a door ahead!” she said, pointing her flashlight to it.

Allura was there! My feet moved before I could process the situation and I started running against everyone’s protests. I had to find her before it was too late!

I entered the dark hallway to the room, screaming the priestess’ name. I followed the foul smell and I finally reached her. She was already on her feet and when she saw me, she hugged me closely.

“You really came…”

“Of course…”

Suddenly the room became colder and the smell unbearable. I searched the room with my light and I stopped in front of the bathtub from my dream. It was full of blood and something was rising slowly from it.

Zarkon –

His body was out of the bath and we could see the skinny bones and the putrid skin. Disgusting.

Allura raised her hands and started a short protective prayer to buy us time to escape, ”Rin, Pyo, Toh, She, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zai, Zen” – there were the nine cuts.

The monster screamed in pain and we took off out of the room. Before I could step out after Allura, I felt two strong hands grab me and push me against the wall. I was stuck and the monster was coming after me.

I tried to escape, but I had no force. Zarkon approached me and I felt like vomiting. He looked into my eyes and I never thought I would see something so inhumane.

Before he could touch me, I heard Pidge’s voice ring through the air “LANCE!”

Shiro followed suit and he whistled, calling two blinding lights that attacked Zarkon, making him disappear for a short time.

“Let’s get out of here. Urado hasn’t vanquished yet!” he declared and we all left running, with the monster on our feet.

~

We finally escaped the house through a window, jumping on the soft grass.

“Man…why did you go alone?!” Hunk asked, panting relieved.

“Sorry…”

“Don’t worry kiddo, without you we couldn’t have found Allura” Coran said with a smile.

“Unfortunately, we found the missing people,” Keith said In a whisper, “They were heaped on the room next to you, their necks sliced. On top of that, the room was stacked with so many bones…probably the other victims…”

I felt tears in my eyes and I looked away. I sensed Allura approaching me and she whispered my name silently.

“Thank you, Lance…for saving me and for last night…”

“Hm?”

“When you came for me …” she said, taking out the small key I gave her from her pocket.

“WHAAT?! I was so sure it was a dream! But I really gave you my key! How’s that possible?”

“It seems your list of talents is growing every day, Lance!” Hunk said, patting my back.

Oh…wow…I really was a big deal…

“Speaking of talents, what was the thing you did there?” Coran asked curiously.

“Oh…that were my Shikis…Chinese Taoists captured monsters and spirits by controlling them. It’s called spirit control or enslaving demons…”

Amazing! I have never heard of this thing before!

The sun slowly started raising, so that meant we could go back in to take our remaining bags. Mister Kaitz was the one to open the front door. He was quite surprised to find us outside, but he listened closely to what Pidge explained.

“You should leave the house to rot, as the ancestor's will. Or simply burn the house down. An exorcism is impossible and very dangerous.”

He nodded and after we took our things, we left the mansion and its curse behind.

~

Three days later, I read in the newspapers a small story about a fire in the mountains, taking down an extravagant mansion. It was a tiny story compared to the whole truth of the case. It was truly an awful thing, but I was glad we all with nothing more than a little fright.

I was in the office when the door opened and Romelle entered happily. I served her some tea and she sat on the sofa. This was my chance to ask her some more things about Pidge, especially since she and Shiro were out for a bit!

I smiled mischievously and sat near her. “Hey, Romelle…what sort of people are Pidge’s parents?”

“What do you mean? They’re normal people of course!”

“Well normal people don’t stop sending their daughter to highschool…”

“Ah well, that’s true. Pidge’s father is a researcher of super-natural psychology!”

Oh….so Pidge is a second-generation researcher. It seemed she was following her father’s footsteps…

Romelle smiled “Pidge is not the kind of child who opens herself up to people, but there is no reason to maintain secrecy. Oh, I actually have a little more info to share!”

Yes! I loved gossip.

Romelle leaned in and whispered in my ear “It’s a secret ok? Actually, Shiro and Pidge have eloped!”

WHAT?

I looked dumbfounded at the girl, “You’re kidding right?”

“Heh, I thought you’d fall for it… Actually, Shiro is already engaged.”

“Huh?”

“Oh, you didn’t know? He is going to get married to Adam!”

That really was new information. I have never observed any ring on Shiro’s finger.

The door opened and Pidge entered, followed by Adam and Shiro.

“What are you doing here, Romelle?” she asked bored.

“Oh just gossiping here with Lance!”

Pidge rolled her eyes “Don’t you have a plane to catch?”

“It’s already time? Oh no!” the girl got up and rushed to the door.

“See you another time, Lance!” she said and left.

Adam shook his head and smiled “The plane leaves in 4 hours, so we won’t be late, but she doesn’t usually check her watch. Take care!” he shortly kissed his fiancé and left after Romelle.

I looked as the two left. So they weren’t even from Altea… strange. I glanced up to Pidge, who was looking at me with a small smile. “Lance, tea…”


	23. Chapter 23

March came faster than I expected and with it, Pidge’s erratic trips around the country. Once the weather became better, she left every week to go God knows where and I was left alone in the office with Shiro. It wasn’t that bad, he helped me develop some of my powers. I learnt that my dreams usually portrayed the past, and I was able to help on cases with new information. He also showed me different kind of spells to protect myself, like the 9 Cuts that Allura used in the last case.

Speaking of cases, Pidge didn’t take any in the last month. We were still a bit shaken up by the Urado Mansion, so she took the decision to stay put for some weeks.

It was almost one year since I had started working here and I was really glad I broke that camera that day in the old school building – even though it was an accident, really! Without this job, I wouldn’t have met so many amazing people and I wouldn’t have found out what amazing powers I possessed.

Today, Pidge was on one of her trips and I was relaxing with Coran and Allura in the office. Shiro never commented about the others’ frequent visits, he really enjoyed them too. Pidge was the only one annoyed to see other faces then her own…

“So, Pidge is still not back from her trip?” Allura asked, sipping her tea.

“Nah, all she said was that she’ll be back today. She’s probably sight-seeing or something…”

“It can’t be helped…maybe she’s at a very fancy hot-spring, relaxing, while you’re stuck doing all the paperwork!” Coran laughed. It made me so glad that my situation was that funny…

“By the way, how much are you really paid for your job? I mean, I’ve always seen you arrange papers, clean, make tea – all kinds of odd jobs?”

“Well, it depends if we have cases or not in that month. But my salary is a little bit higher than average…”

For me it was enough really but seeing Allura’s face made me think she wasn’t very happy to hear that.

“You’re joking, right?! You need to get paid more! Wasn’t her father a university professor or something? Shouldn’t she be loaded…?”

“Actually, being a professor is not that lucrative…” Coran said and at that moment, the door opened, and Pidge entered, carrying her bag and her coat in one hand. She didn’t look very happy.

“Welcome back Pidge!” I said, getting up.

She ignored me and went straight to her office.

“Why is she in such a foul mood?” Allura asked in a whisper.

“She’s always like that after she gets back…”

The door opened again and this time it was a client who entered the office,” Good afternoon…are you…what one would call _‘mediums’_ , right?”

The client’s name was Aksel Olsen. He came with his niece, Angelika, to request GPR’s help with a case at his family home.

Pidge opened her notebook to write the case details.

“I was wondering if you would examine her. I was thinking of just bringing her to a hospital for treatment, but…something is off,” the young man said, taking off the ribbon on the girl’s neck, reveling a nasty bruise. “This circles her entire neck… Skin diseases like that are nothing unusual, but that’s not all…” he slowly took down the child’s dress to revel her back. Along the spine, in old Altean characters, there was a shocking sentence: _’This foolish girl will descend into hell’_.

~

Pidge didn’t need a second look to accept the case and I had a feeling this wasn’t going to be an easy one. After she excused me from school, GPR, alongside Coran and Allura, was off to the South of Altea, in the Korali province, at the seaside.

Part of me was excited, because I loved the ocean and the beach! I hoped we would have time to relax a bit, but after seeing Pidge’s concerned look, I couldn’t help but feel we were in for a long period of time.

The client’s mansion was a traditional one, build on a cliff near the ocean. According to Aksel, it was built centuries ago and since then it became a sort of resort, until strange things started happening, such as mysterious deaths and accidents.

The head of the house, an old lady named Esma Olsen was the one who greeted and welcomed us into the house.

After sitting down into the main living room, Pidge requested to hear more details about the case.

“If I were to speak freely and openly about it, you’d probably think me a fool, but this house is cursed. There are horrible legends concerning the Olsen house – great misfortunes would occur whenever the house would change heads. Actually, when the last owner – my father – passed away, people began dying in alarming numbers. The same thing happened when my grandparents died…Among my six siblings, I was the only one who survived…”

A cursed bloodline…that must have been awful.

“Several days ago, my husband passed away and soon after, those rashes began appearing on Angelika…”

“I wish to hear about when your father passed away…When was it?” Pidge asked, making noted in her black notebook.

“It’s been 32 years now. Eight people died in total from this house… The youngest five among the seven children and the oldest, my cousin and my uncle. The half that survived accidents, passed away due to unexplainable illnesses…”

“You said ‘from this house’ – were there also outsiders who died?”

“Yes…customers from our restaurant…and three mediums who came to investigate…” she said in a whisper.

People who came here to investigate…just like us…I had a déjà vu from the Urado case just now…

“We very much want you to help us…but we realize the risks – you could leave if you want…”

“It would be cowardly to leave without seeing what we’re up against… Right now, the restaurant is closed, right?”

“Yes, after my husband died, we decided to close it for the time being. We let all the employees take a vacation, so in the mansion there are only family members,” the woman said.

“That is the best action to take,” Pidge nodded.” Did you feel anything abnormal or perhaps see anything strange?”

“The myna bird I was raising died on the funeral day and three days after two other birds died, alongside one of our dogs. Some of the workers at the restaurant said they saw a ghost peeking into a room from a window looking over the cove…but that’s all.”

Pidge noted everything down. “We bought our equipment. Did you prepare a room for us?” she asked, turning her head to Aksel.

“Yes, I’ll lead you there!”

~

We were given a very spacious wing of the house. It was more than a room- an apartment really. There were two rooms down the hallway prepared for us to sleep in and a main office where we could put our equipment in. In contrast with the Urado mansion, I got no strange feeling rom this one- it was more welcoming and the traditional air it had made me feel at ease.

“This is amazing! It’s humongous! I feel so bad to use it as a base…!”

“We set up this room and the one next door for you…please take advantage of them while the restaurant is closed” Aksel said.

“Thank you very much,” Pidge said, putting down some equipment.

I examined the room a little more. I looked outside the window, admiring the view. The room overlooked the cove, and the scenery was breathtaking.

We set up the equipment and after that, dinner was served, and we met the rest of the family. It was pretty hard to memorize everyone, but I managed.

The oldest was Henri with his wife Helga, followed by Amund and Antonia, who were twins and Larissa, who was the second oldest daughter. Antonia was married to Yosef. After that was Aksel’s father - Esma’s son- and his wife Mathea.

Such a complicated family tree…

At dinner I also found out that Pidge and Shiro did not eat meat, something that I found very surprisingly. Shiro also never drank alcohol because him being an Omnyouji restricted such practices.

After we ate, we went back to the base to set up the equipment. Pidge was planning to start monitoring starting that night. There were many things we had to investigate, many regarding the family history, so she asked Shiro to go to the local library and to further research in the morning.

For tonight we sticked to setting up the cameras and thermometers.

Aksel came and served us some tea and I took the opportunity to ask him some questions about this family.

“Your family sure is quiet when they eat…your brothers barely said a word the whole meal…”

“Lately they’ve been moody. It can’t be helped. They’re worried. Yosef seemed to be in a particularly bad mood. He is not usually like that… he and Henri help at the restaurant and they have great social manners, but since the funeral he’s been very harsh with everyone.”

“Has anyone else’s personality changed?” asked Pidge, approaching us.

“Yes…Amund used to very cheerful, but now he never smiles or makes jokes. Helga also. But the ones whose personalities changed the most are the children. Beside my niece, there are two more children, Antonia’s kids. Until now, they were perfectly normal, but recently they’ve been clinging to each other, saying strange things and running off when someone comes near them. This started right after the funeral…”

~

By midnight, we finished setting up the cameras. The house was silent and dark.

Suddenly, the peace of the night was broken by a loud scream. Me and Coran were the first to arrive to the west wing, and we rushed into the room the scream came from, only to discover a shocking view: Yosef was struggling in Henri’s hands, bloody and screaming erratically. In the corner of the room, his wife was standing in fear, crying silently in her sister-in-law’s embrace.

Shiro and Pidge entered the room after us, and upon seeing us, Yosef jumped from the restrain with his knife pointed at Shiro. He dodged without effort and with a fast move of his hand near the man’s neck, he knocked him down unconscious.

When everyone relaxed a bit, Pidge asked what happened.

“It was so sudden…he just jumped at me with a knife…” his wife said “If Henri wasn’t near the room, I would probably be dead…”

“You mean he just suddenly started acting violent?”

“There was a little argument…”

“May I ask what it was about?”

“He was so moody during dinner, so I asked why. He just screamed at me and left to the kitchen only to return with a knife. He was fine until just before dinner…then he started being nervous and….”

“I bet it’s spiritual possession,” Coran declared.

Pidge nodded in agreement. “Maybe we should call Hunk…or…Allura, can you expel a spirit?”

“Yeah…I can try, even if it’s not really my expertise. But I can’t guarantee that he won’t still be possessed,” the priestess said, looking determined.

We bound Yosef and put him in a storage room. After preparing her robes, Allura started the cleansing.

We silently watched from the doorway as Allura began her praying.

“Did you call Hunk?” whispered Coran.

“Yes, he and Keith will be leaving with the first flight in the morning…” Pidge answered, looking at the scene in front of her.

Halfway through the exorcism, Yosef woke up and began shaking terribly. A cracking sound began ringing through the room.

Shiro took a step forward to protect me and Coran was starting a mantra.

From Yosef, who was now laughing uncontrollably a spirit rose.

The figure of the beast, which seemed to double in Yosef’s body, gradually became darker taking the appearance of a long-tailed fox. Although similar to such an animal, it was very large since it was taller than a person. It stooped down and its pair of eyes stared steadily in this direction—

Allura joined her hands together, making a sound, “Hail the goddess Marici, I pray to thee, descend here before us and grant thy protection.”

She firmly stated and folded her fingers together. At the same time, the beast sprang up. A muted scream arose in the background.

It was like slow motion from there. Jumping high, the beast passed overhead of Allura. Visibly surprised, she followed it with her eyes. It was heading straight in this direction. Just as I was about to involuntarily close my eyes, Shiro and Coran stepped forward. The pair were the reason the beast altered its direction of landing. Straight in line of its altered path was Pidge. Of course, it would target the two of us – we were the most vulnerable. All of a sudden, Pidge crouched low as if to square off. It was at that time Shiro’s voice boomed like thunder.

“Pidge! Don’t do it!”

About to raise her hands, she suddenly stopped, her concentration long lost. Startled, she looked up at us. Just for a moment our gazes met. Almost simultaneously as Pidge returned her eyes to the beast, it collided with her.

“Pidge!”

I don’t know whose voice it was. Everyone seemed to jump to her. Pidge’s body was blown back, slamming into the wall behind, the figure of the beast disappearing. It looked like time lapse as the head of the beast penetrated her chest, gradually disappearing until the tip of the tail as if slipping through.

“Are you okay!?”

Shiro ran over. Pidge was kneeling while leaning against the wall. She coughed into her hand, clutching her chest tightly.

“Are you injured?”

“...I’m fine.”

I couldn’t move as if somehow paralyzed. Someone from behind put their hand on my shoulder.

“Lance?”

Coran looked into my face, “Are you alright?”

“Ah...yes… I was a little surprised.”

Pidge stood up and lightly brushed dust off herself.

“How is Yosef?”

That being said, Allura rushed over in a panic. Absently, Yosef raised just his head, wearing a blank look.

“Are you alright?”

Hearing the priestess, Yosef looked around restlessly.

“What is this... what happened?”

~

Back in the base, me and Shiro went through the recordings, but nothing had been recorded from the cleansing.

“It went static the moment that foxlike entity appeared…It must have been a spirit barrier…” Shiro said.

“We can easily spot an ordinary fox spirit, but this is probably no mere natural adversary…” Coran chipped in. “And…what happened to Pidge?”

We turned to look at her. Her face was pale, brown hair falling messily over her face and she was still clutching her chest.

“Are you feeling woozy?” I asked, putting my hand on her shoulder.

“No, my back just hurts a little…”

“Is that where you were hit? Are you okay?”

“It’s nothing. I don’t feel so good, I think I’ll step back for tonight…” she said with a small smile and got up from the chair.

“I’ll see you to our room! Maybe I have some medication for you to take!” Allura said, helping Pidge out the room.

Gosh I was such an idiot! I should have been the one to help her! Such a wasted opportunity.

I turned back to the monitor, but Coran got up abruptly and rushed down after them.

What –

I looked at the monitor, only to see Pidge strangling Allura with great force.

What was happening between them?

“Shiro, get here now!”

We hurried after the two and with a blow to her head, Shiro knocked Pidge unconscious. She fell limply in his arms and Allura struggled to breathe again.

“How…much force…does she have in those …little arms. Does she hate me that much?” she said in between coughs.

“Things seem to have taken a turn for the worse…that spirit didn’t pass through Pidge. It possessed her,” Shiro said, looking down at the sleeping girl.


	24. Chapter 24

I watched Pidge as she was breathing slowly, sleeping peacefully. From afar, no one could tell she was actually possessed by a crazy spirit. Shiro put her on a mattress in the base and covered her with a blanket in order to watch over her.

“So…what do we do now?” Coran asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence. It was a really good question – now that the boss and the brains of the whole operation was unavailable, we felt kind of lost.

“Shouldn’t we tie her up like we did with Yosef?” asked Allura.

“I don’t think that Pidge can be stopped by tying her up…” Shiro declared and we turned to him.

“What do you mean? Unlike Yosef, she’s just a small girl, we can handle her!” Coran said, confused by Shiro’s remark.

“I think Allura was very lucky. Perhaps the spirit possessing Pidge still hasn’t figured out how to use her capabilities yet. If it had, I think Allura would be dead right now…”

What? Say that again, please. Is Pidge some kind of secret deadly assassin or a master in martial arts?

“When the entity learns how to truly use Pidge, we’ll have no means to stop it. It’ll do us no good to try and tie and confine it. Neither for us, nor for Pidge…survival will be impossible.”

“If we ask what in the world you meant by that, are you going to bother telling us?” Allura asked.

“I’m sorry. It’s not my place to say anything. I understand that’s not the answer you want to hear, but I’m sorry. You just have to take my word on this. All I’m saying that Pidge is a far more dangerous human than you could ever imagine…”

Are we even talking about Pidge?

I glanced at the sleeping girl. She looked so angelic, her brown hair falling on her shoulders. Her face was pale, and she looked almost dead.

“Ok…so it won’t do any good to put her in the storage room, right? And we can barely afford to wait any longer for Hunk. For now, we can only try another exorcism!” Coran declared.

“I think it would be impossible even for Hunk…Pidge is an extremely strong-willed person with great self-control. It must have been hard to possess someone so strong, compared to normal people like us. It won’t be easy to expel a spirit capable of possessing her, even temporarily. There is great danger if we do this improperly,” Shiro continued, making us feel anxious.

My curiosity was driving me crazy. I needed to know what secret powers Pidge possessed and why were they so dangerous.

“Well then, what should we do?”

“I don’t know…” Shiro sighed.” If we could isolate the possessing spirit in its true form, we might buy some time to find an effective exorcism method. In any case, we can only keep researching for now. We need to know the true form of the spirit that’s possessing Pidge.”

“But what will we do with her for the time being? She won’t sleep forever,” Coran inquired.

“Right now, she’s completely defenceless so I saved some rituals to try. We can try them all, they are five and each one has its strength and its weakness, but I can’t completely perform them all by myself, because I’ll run out of power.”

“All right, I’ll help you. We have no choice but try this on her,” Coran said and then turned to me and Allura “What do you want to do? If we chose to escape, we couldn’t take her in this state, so either we try this plan and give it everything we’ve got…or otherwise, escape and abandon Pidge.”

“No, there’s no way we’re abandoning her!” I exclaimed, very sure of my decision. There was no way in hell I would leave her like this!

Allura nodded in agreement, “She never left any of us behind, so we can’t do such a thing to her.”

Then it was decided: we would save Pidge and the Olsen family.

~

_I was standing over Keith’s body, a knife in my hand. I’ve killed him and yet I felt nothing. This were not my emotions. I heard footsteps behind me and I turned to see Pidge running towards me, tears in her eyes._

_“I murdered him,” I heard my own voice say._

_“Why…”_

_“I had to. When I came here, he was already there. I thought you betrayed me, Pidge.”_

_“I would never do such a thing!” she said and took my hands in hers._

_“But he has money and prestige. Naturally, I thought you chose him, Pidge!”_

_“This is not true! I did this and even ran away with you...why don’t you believe me?” she shouted with tears in her eyes._

_“Why did he come here? You were the only one who knew about this place…!”_

_“Someone secretly swapped my letter; I was waiting at a completely different place.”_

_I took her in my arms and we spun around._

_“Where do we go from here? We can’t run away after killing someone…”_

_“Should we kill ourselves? We’ll be cursed until the end of days…” she said, looking at me with her deep brown eyes._

_“Let’s do it together…”_

_I leaned in to kiss her, but my vision became blurry and I was shrouded in darkness._

~

I opened my eyes with a shock. It was all a dream – I experienced someone’s past.

I felt myself blushing as the thought of almost kissing Pidge. That was one hell of a dream!

I looked around, but it was still dark outside.

Just as I pondered the dream, there was a loud *bang* from the direction of the window. I lifted my head. The windowpane thudded once again. Someone was throwing pebbles.

I stood up and went to open the window. Beneath it, the water surface of the cove was far below. Pitch black water extended, mirror-like. From the surface of the water, innumerable white lights were floating up with the speed of falling snow. The very dimly lit lights, which resembled spirit lights, disappeared straight into the sky.

...ah, I didn’t wake up.

The figure of a person on the surface of the water was visible. They raised their head and looked up to me, waving to come down. I gently descended and landed on the surface of the water. It felt like I had stepped on glass barefoot. A number of floating lights were visible. From below, dream Pidge smiled gently and took my hand as I blushed furiously.

“Something terrible just happened!” I said, trying to break her gaze.

“Were you dreaming?’ she asked.

“Oh…yes…I killed Keith…” I turned to look at her “By any chance, did you dream the same thing?”

She shook her head. “I was the one who guided you into the dream…”

“What?”

She chuckled softly but didn’t answer, taking my hand and guided me to the beach. I examined the view from below the mountain, seeing an old stairway leading to the house.

We walked side by side, entering a small cave.

“Are these all spirits?” I asked, memorized by the little floating lights. It was truly magical.

“That’s right. The spirits seemed to have been summoned here…They are probably lives lost in the sea near here.” She said and turned to the end of the cave. “It looks like there is a small shrine here. That’s where the souls are travelling to.”

I followed her gaze and looked at the old, wooden shrine. It felt so creepy and lonely.

“Even I don’t understand this place. This isn’t an evil place, but it doesn’t feel like a good one either. It is like a sacred ground…,” she said, visibly uneasy.

“Pidge…are you going to be okay?” I asked suddenly and she turned to me surprised.

“Hm? Yeah, I’m sorry for making you worry…” she smiled and I blushed again.

I felt better, seeing her alive and well. I closed my eyes, and I drifted into darkness…

~

When I woke up Keith and Hunk had already arrived. Allura explained the situation to them in the base. Last night, Shiro performed a spell on Pidge to prevent her from waking up. We didn’t really want any trouble with her awake.

I really wanted to ask Shiro about Pidge’s powers, but I stayed silent. I made a mental note to look into them after we got out of here alive and well.

“Can I see her?” Keith asked and Shiro opened the folding doors and let him in. Pidge was in the same position as yesterday, on the mattress and under the cover.

“Can you sense anything?”

“I haven’t seen this often. This is just a feeling, but the possessing spirit seems to be what’s called an ‘empty spirit’…One that is colorless and transparent, it doesn’t even exhibit any kind of emotion. Despite this, it possesses a strong presence…” Keith said, eyeing the sleeping girl.

We closed the room and went over the recordings from last night. We could see little light similar to the ones in my dream, ascending from the sea below.

“There is no audio, no vibration either. The other sensors are within normal levels. The temperature dropped five degrees,” Shiro said, reading the information from the computer.

Aksel entered the room to serve some tea, and I thought about asking what’s the deal with the shrine below.

“Is there a way to go down into the cove below? Maybe some stone walk or something?”

“Yes, why do you ask?”

“Is there a small shrine in the middle of the cave, after a bend passageway?”

“Did you go down there? I wouldn’t have allowed it. The stone steps are very dangerous! The entry is forbidden. What did you do?” he asked, making everyone turn to me.

“Well, I might have done something…” I started telling them about the small spirits coming from the sea, not mentioning Pidge. “Humans souls were being summoned from the sea to the cave – a lot of them.”

Aksel frowned, uneasiness on his face. “There really is a cave as you described…Salt-drenched corpses would wash ashore there. People who died on sea would float into that cave. Not just people, that shrine too…it washed here a long time ago…”

~

Aksel was understanding enough to show us the steps.

“They are extremely old, built long before the restaurant and the house were here. They’ve mostly fallen apart, so we don’t use them.”

“Do you know when this restaurant was built?” I asked, curious.

“I heard it was my great-grandfather's generation. Apparently, they moved the restaurant from the city. The main house was here before and my great-grandfather came here many times. The house was very old...I would say even from 400 years ago. If we go further to the left, you’d be able to see the cave from above, thanks to the shape of the mountain.”

We continued walking to the edge of the cliff, were five rocks were placed. Are they some kind of gravestones?

“Hey, Aksel, what is that?” asked Hunk, pointing to some rocks above the sea.

“Oh, that’s Okobu, the large one and Mekobu, the smaller.”

“Is that a sacred rope tying them together?” asked Allura, examining the stones in the distance.

“Yes, but I don’t think it has anything to do with any Shinto rituals, because the local fisherman tie it there to mark the new year…It’s said that a man and a woman leapt to the sea from here…”

That caught my attention.

“It’s a local legend. Once upon a time, there was a princess who lived on this land. She had a lover among the fishermen here. However, another man appeared before the illicit romance. He was the son of a local noble family who tried to force the princess to marry him. The girl disliked the noble son and set out to elope with her lover. Unfortunately, the noble secretly replaced the letters the couple had written, and they failed to meet as planned. In the confusion, the fisherman killed the noble, because he thought he was betrayed by his lover. The couple realized their misunderstanding, but it was too late, so they leapt off this cliff in the sea below. The gods took pity on them and ensured that they would never be apart again, so they transformed the fisherman in Okobu and the princess into Mekobu.”

Just like in my dream…I was the fisherman and Pidge the princess…

“Oh! You also have a shrine here! Amazing!” exclaimed Allura, looking at the building near the woods.

“My family has been looking after it for generations…” Aksel said.

“What are those?” I asked, looking at three stones similar to the ones near the edge of the cliff.

“Those are the tohachi mounds. Or the six-three mounds, whatever you like to call them. Nobody knows how they got their name, but it’s strange because there are only 8, not 9. I think there was supposed to be 6 by the cliff, but something happened…”

“Oh! Those mounds must be fox graves. Maybe they had to be moved because the restaurant was built. I bet that when that happened, one of the six wasn’t moved properly and it broke apart! They must be angry!” Allura exclaimed.

That made sense. If someone broke my grave, I would be furious too.

“What we’re calling a fox here is not really a fox…” Keith spoke softly. “I can’t feel any animal spirits at the restaurant or here. There are many instances where the spirits deceive human eyes by appearing in the form of beasts. I can feel the presence of many spirits, but I cannot tell what they are…This is a strange place. I don’t sense anything good here, but I don’t sense anything evil either.”

“Does it feel sacred?” I asked, remembering the dream from last night.

“Yes, that’s right…” he said, turning his head to me. “When I was in America, I visited native American grounds. This feeling was very similar to that one. At that time, the grounds were considered holy places, protected by the spirits of the dead. It was also the epicentre of a curse that brings calamity down upon dishonoured people…”

We finally reached the other staircase, more secured, and we went down to the cave.

The entrance and the surrounding area were just like in my dream, but now I could see the little shrine more clearly.

“It’s the same feeling like the one on the mountain,” remarked Keith.

Coran opened the wooden door to reveal a piece of wood.

“That is a drift-wood. We call it Okobu. It looks like a human head and hands, posing like a buddha statue. That’s why we enshrined it!” Aksel said.

~

Back at the base, we told Shiro all the new information we gathered. He stayed behind to monitor the cameras and look after Pidge, who thankfully didn’t wake up – the sleeping charm was working.

“Shouldn’t we put a camera down there too?” suggested Hunk, while we took a break and drank tea.

“It would be a good idea, but how do we get electricity? One battery can only last two hours,” declared Shiro.” Although, I did bring along some interval timers!”

“What are those?”

“A device that switched power on and off at present times. For example, maybe we want to record only ten minutes out of every hour. At that rate, the batteries could last us half a day.”

Our conversation suddenly came to a halt when Aksel entered the room in a panic.

“Something terrible has happened! Help!” he said, and we rushed after him to another room.

Amund tried to kill himself! He sliced his wrists…There was blood everywhere…

Allura rushed to take his pulse and I called an ambulance.

What is going with this family?


	25. Chapter 25

Amund was thankfully saved before anything tragic would happen.

“My brother apparently hears voices when he’s alone. They say, ‘kill your family’. He said when he sleeps, he actually does have dreams of killing them. He can feel his hands stabbing them and then he wakes up. These dreams were so disturbing he felt he couldn’t tell anyone about them…” Aksel said, telling us about his hospitalized brother. “If only we discovered this earlier…I’m deeply sorry for everything. It’s also my fault for what happened to Miss Gunderson…”

I tried to reassure him everything was ok and after he left, we turned back to the most important at hand: helping Pidge.

Without her, everything was strange. Shiro was a great leader, but we all felt the emptiness she left behind. I really missed her sarcastic remarks…

“Shiro…do we still have rituals to turn Pidge around?” Coran asked.

“Yes…”

“We need to hurry…do you understand what would happen if the spirit absorbed itself into her?” the monk asked, looking serious at us.

Could it kill her?

“But on the other hand, do you understand what would happen if the spirit left her body?”

“Of course …as long as my shiki is near her, the spirit cannot leave the room,” Shiro said and revelation hit him. ”Do you imply that there may be more than one spirit haunting the family?”

“Hey hold on! Was Amund possessed?” I asked, feeling uneasy. More than one spirit?

“I cannot say that with certainty…but we must watch over all the members of the family,” Shiro said and turned to Hunk.” Did you check on Angelika?”

“Yes. I performed a temporary, simple exorcism and sealed her room.”

“What do you think, Keith?”

“All the spirits I’ve sensed are all the same. I have a similar feeling to the one possessing Pidge. It’s so empty,” the medium declared.

“What about you Lance?” Shiro asked, taking me by surprise.

“Me?”

“Do you sense anything?”

“This might seem to be conflicting Keith’s opinion…but I think there are dead people harboring a grudge. People who were brutally betrayed and killed. At this point, the dead people…probably no longer have a connection with this land…” I said, trying to make sense of the first dream I had.

“Well then, do we know when the Olsen family moved here?” Keith asked.

“No, I still need to look around,” Shiro said. “Hunk, go to the hospital and try an exorcism on Amund.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Allura, hand out the charms to everyone, including the members of the family and all of us. Lance, help her distribute them.”

~

Allura and I gave everyone a charm, but we still had two of the children left. We couldn’t find them anywhere, until I heard laughing from the garden.

“Hey, you two, wait up, this is important! I have a favour to –“ I shouted after them, but they ran away.

While chasing the pair, who were running away, I got a strange feeling. Why were they running away? Why did they hate the charms? We exited the building and came forth into the shop. The pair jumped outside through the entranceway.

“Hey, Berith!”

I called out to the two who ran off to the front yard.

“Did you know your uncle died?”

When I said that big lie, the pair abruptly stopped. They looked back at me with blank looks on their faces. They immediately beamed in delight.

“Really? He went to the hospital, didn’t he?

“Yes. But they didn’t make it in time. Your uncle died at the hospital.”

Erik murmured quietly. “Hooray!”

...these children…are happy…no way…

I deliberately spoke in a whisper.

“And Aksel also...”

“Aki, too? What happened?” the girl smiled widely.

The pair raised their voices in unison. They came back two, three steps in this direction.

“What should I do? Should I tell you?”

“Tell us, tell us.”

“Hmm…but I thought I might keep it secret.”

When I mumbled indecisively, the pair drew nearer.

“Hey, tell us. Tell us! Did Aki die, too?”

“Well…”

“Is he dead? Did he ride in the car?”

“Car…?”

The two of them pulled on my trousers. I quickly caught the pair’s hands.

“What do you mean by car?”

“Let me go!”

“I won’t let go! Hey, what did you mean by car!?”

The pair struggled. I clutched their hands desperately.

“Lance? What are you doing?”

Allura and Keith, and then Antonia, came running. Erik escaped from my hand. I adjusted my grip on Berith, who tried to escape along with him.

Erik looked back from a slight distance away.

“Let go of her!”

“No. Tell me why you said car!”

“I said let go of her!”

I looked to Allura who was in a fluster off to the side.

“Allura, make Berith hold this charm.”

“Don’t do that!”

I glared at Erik. “Then tell me about the car. Or else we’ll stick this charm to Berith so that it won’t come off.”

“If you do that, I’ll jump into the sea!”

“...Erik, do you know what you’re saying?”

It wasn’t even five meters from the front yard to the stairs that went down to coast.

“I know! If I die, everyone will suffer because of it.”

“I think it will be painful if you die.”

“I know that! If it’s painful, then it serves them right!”

“Whom does it serve right?”

“Everyone.”

I pressed against Berith who was struggling with Allura and Keith.

“Allura, hold onto her. —Erik, who are you really?”

I came out from the front door. The boy withdrew one step while glaring at me.

“You’re not Erik, are you? The real Erik wouldn’t say something like that. And he wouldn’t be afraid of charms.”

“I’m not afraid!”

“You’re lying! You’re scared, aren’t you? That’s why you hate even holding a charm, isn’t it?”

Erik smiled. By no means did it seem like a child’s smile. It was creepy and horrific.

“I’ll kill.”

“Kill who?”

“You, as well as everyone with you. Everyone in this family, too.”

I gently lifted my hand.

“This child, too.” Erik — the being inside of him said this and laughed. “Jumping into the sea would be merciful. When compared to having your head cut off, it’ll be pleasant.”

“Head...cut off?”

“Compared to the betrayal by one’s comrades.”

“What did the people of this house do to you?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“...leave that child.”

“The child will be of no use if he dies. I’ll leave if that happens.”

Erik turned laughing. He started running from that spot. A distance no more than five meters.

“Naumaku sanmanda bazaradan kan!”

Please stop!

I needed to do something fast. I prepared to the nine cuts, even if I knew that they should never be used on a living person.

“Rin Pyou Tou Sha Kai Jin Retsu Zai Zen!”

I swung down the sword seal and Erik fell down. There was slightly less than one meter until he would have gotten to the stairs. And at the same time, something shrouded in wind rushed past the side of my face and off behind me at a furious speed.

“...what?”

Even though I looked around, there was nothing. Suddenly, Berith began to cry as if on fire. I hurriedly rushed over to where Erik was. When I took him into my arms from where he had fallen, he began to cry in a tone similar to a scream.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry...”

~

Since the pair would not stop crying, we decided to examine them and found that severe burns had developed on Erik’s back— and strangely, Berith’s as well. A cross striped blister had developed there exactly like I had cut the nine syllables. It was by no means large, but it was probably unbearably painful.

The pair, who had finally calmed and were being treated in the living room, wore blank looks as if nothing had happened. They were merely fiddling with the charms they were made to hold in curiosity. Keith had folded the charms and put them inside of charm bags, which were sewn from handkerchiefs, and when she had put them around their necks, they had been somewhat delighted.

I apologized profusely for injuring the pair. When Mathea brought back the medicine box, I begged on my knees for her forgiveness.

“I’m so sorry!”

Antonia, who was watching this scene, interceded.

“It’s thanks to you that both Erik and Berith are safe. Please do not worry about it.”

No, is it okay to call this safe…? As I was breaking into a cold sweat, a small hand touched my arm.

“Uh… I’m sorry.”

Aksel returned shorty after.

“The car… its’ brake oil had leaked out.”

Worried about the word ‘car’, I asked them to examine all of the cars.

“It was the car I was personally using… If I had driven it without noticing, it would have resulted in an accident.”

I sighed deeply… that was a relief. Even if everyone was now safe, Coran had to scold me for using the Cuts on a person.

“An exorcism can’t be done by just anyone. Even so, you do have a talent for it…but don’t do that again…” he said, patting my head.” Anyhow, did we give everyone charms?”

“Well technically yeas, but we didn’t find Larissa, because she wasn’t around. I asked around, but nobody had seen her,” Allura declared.

Strange…

~

After dinner, me and Allura were tasked to stay at the base, while the others went around the house. It was almost like a break and I was more than happy to relax for a bit.

I took the opportunity to ask Allura somethings about the spells.

“How did you use the nine cuts before, without hurting the person possessed?”

“First, you have to use the shici baku, which is an immobility chant. It just makes a person unable to move for a while.”

Interesting…

“Originally, the words were known as the defensive nine words and were used for self-defense. You use them when you want to protect yourself from demons intruding while you pray or train. If you take the middle and push your spirit out, you’re also shooting out spiritual energy,” she continued.

“Then exorcism is controlling spiritual energy, right?”

“Yes, and using chants and tools just enhances the energy. It’s not completely necessary, though.”

“Then isn’t it pointless?”

“Well…it’s more like it doesn’t matter if you’re incorrectly memorized the mantra…Are you familiar with Qigong from China?”

“Hm, yes, Shiro told me some brief things about it. Isn’t that when you can use your hands to cure illnesses or strike people from far away?”

“That’s it. It’s kung-fu that controls Chi. I think it’s more like spiritual energy without rituals.”

“And that’s different from PK?”

“Yes. Curing illnesses is PK-LT and striking someone from far away is PK-ST. So PK is spiritual energy. Even so, I think you can use Qigong partially if you don’t have PK-LT. I’m not very familiar with it, although I’ve heard that those who’ve mastered it are amazing. Some of the most powerful can crack rocks without touching them, bend steel or even control people, or so I’ve heard. And also exorcise spirits of course.”

“Maybe Shiro can do it!”

“Yeah, it could be a probability, but then why didn’t he use it until now?”

We both laughed and looked at each other. At that moment it struck me.

“Pidge!” we both exclaimed.

“If she is a Qigong expert, then there’s no point in tying her up!” Allura said, her eyes sparkling with something unexpected.

Everything made sense now – that’s why Shiro insisted that tying her up or locking her in some room would be useless. Even at dinner, when she didn’t eat any meat…

“Oh, I can’t believe it!” I clapped my hands excitedly.

“What is it?”

“Remember the time when Pidge and I fell into the manhole?”

“The spoon bending case?”

“Yes! That time, that hole was full of ruble, but the place we landed on happened to be absolutely clear. That’s why we didn’t get hurt! I also thought it was weird, because the broken ladder and rubble fell with us, so wouldn’t everything land where we did?”

“I see, logically, that’s what should have happened…” Allura said, thinking about it.

"So, someone moved or shattered them!” I shouted. Now everything made so much sense! She was a PK user! She shattered the rumble, before my back hit the ground – she actually saved me from a number of broken bones.

“But then, why didn’t she use Qigong to blow away that spirit that attacked her?”

“Yeah…I remember that Shiro screamed, stopping her. Maybe there’s a reason why she can’t use it…”

Everyone returned by eleven o’clock with alarming news – Larissa was gone.

“She went out sometime at noon, without telling anyone, which was strange for her, and didn’t return. Her wallet and other important personal belongings were still in her room. So, I don’t think she’s gone very far,” Aksel informed us.

We returned to look at the monitors.

“Wait, what’s that?” Coran said, pointing at something on the screen. It was something captured by the camera in the cave.

Something flashed on his face and he became anxious. “Do you have a flashlight? We need to check it out! Hunk, Shiro, come on!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Lance, you and the others stay here!”

After seeing off the three people, who left in a rush, I exchanged a look with Allura.

Was there something wrong in the video of the cave? I stared at the screen again, but I didn’t see anything abnormal. Only the deserted space was projected with that strangely pale tone characteristic of the high sensitivity camera.

“I wonder what it is…”

I tilted my head in thought at Keith’s words.

“...there’s nothing. Even if something strange shows up on video, that doesn’t necessarily mean something strange is going on…”

I broke off mid-sentence and my eyes fixed on the entrance of the cave. At the rocky stretch outside the entrance, white waves were lapping against the protruding rocks. Something was caught there so that it was being washed by the waves.

“What’s that there?”

I stared further, but I couldn’t tell what it was. It repeatedly retreated and hit the rocks.

As I was desperately straining my eyes, the video showed Shiro and the others rush in. They headed straight for the thing that was caught in the rocky area. There was something after all…

Aksel stood up half-way.

I switched over the speaker. Hunk and the others were keeping silent. No sound could be heard from the speakers except the sound of the waves.

Coran pulled the thing up while getting swallowed by the waves. With Shiro, the thing was carried between the pair.

Allura screamed. Aksel rushed out of the room.

The video was coarse, and I couldn’t see well. Even so, I knew that it was a person. As we watched, the person’s body was washed by the waves without resistance. It was a corpse…

_Many things wash in the cave…_

Larissa had not come back… I closed my eyes. Please be someone else. Let it be someone completely unrelated.

—Still, I also knew there could not be such a chance.


	26. Chapter 26

It was undoubtedly Larissa. She was carried by the tide until it had reached that cave. The police were called, and she was carried away. We heard that she underwent an autopsy.

I was in the base holding my knees. Allura patted my back consolingly.

The sound of the waves flowing could still be heard from the speaker. I realized for the first time that the sound of waves was actually a lonesome sound.

If only Pidge was here…with her nothing like this would have happened…I feel so useless.

Coran and the others, who had finished changing their clothes, returned after a while wearing sullen expressions.

“Thanks for your hard work… I made tea.”

“Thanks.”

No one had anything more to say than that.

I finished distributing the cups and just as everyone had started to drink, Coran spoke at long last.

“Keith.”

“Yes?”

“Can you summon Larissa?”

Keith looked back at Coran with a start.

“I think I can, but…”

“Shiro said it’s a bad day for him. I’m sorry, but will you do it?”

“I will try to do what I can.”

“Hey, shouldn’t we tell the family…?”

“No. We don’t know if her death was an accident or not,” Coran implied, looking at us with a serious expression. “I’ll state it clearly. It’s possible that she was murdered by someone in the family. When we passed out the charms, she was already gone. At that point, there were people possessed. I don’t think her family would want to hear that, so we need to speak with her to find out. Understood?”

I nodded anxiously and started preparing the room for the séance.

After closing the lights, we all sat down further around the table and Keith started meditating in front of the candles. Suddenly the room became colder.

“Larissa, are you there?

“Yes…What is it?” the spirit possessing Keith said.

“You have passed away. Do you comprehend?”

“-Yes.”

“Do you know how you died?”

“I fell…into the ocean. I was in the yard outside the tearoom…and someone pushed me over…”

“Who pushed you?”

“I don’t know…it was very scary…” Nao said and Keith’s body began to tremble violently.

What was happening?

“Someone is – pulling me. I’M SCARED! Please don’t! I don’t want to go there! Monster…!” the voice screamed and exited Keith’s body, which fell down.

The medium slowly got up and looked at us with worrying eyes.

“She was murdered. Now the question is by whom…” Hunk remarked. “Well, it wasn’t Amund. When he was carried to the hospital, Nao was still there. And the grandma can’t walk.”

“A kid couldn’t have done it. They simply don’t have the force…”

“Then that means someone else is possessed…”

_‘Monster, monster, monster’_

That word kept ringing in my ear…what happened to Larissa’s spirit?

~

I stood in the cave, vacantly watching the waves crash against the rocks at the entrance. Small orbs of light were also crashing along with the waves. It looked like snow.

...ah, I’m dreaming again...

A figure appeared among the waves. With her head bowed and shoulders drooped.

“Larissa...”

Larissa, who had finally reached the cave, walked quietly as if she didn’t notice me and exited towards the cove.

“Wait, Larissa!”

Upon exiting to the cove, she was taken in by the wind and blown up towards the sky.

I released a single sigh and looked back behind me. The small shrine was visible. It appeared distorted again. It gave off a very unpleasant atmosphere. I wondered if I should try to get nearer, however, I absolutely couldn’t bring myself to do such a thing.

I vacantly watched the shrine for a while. And then, when my gaze returned to the sea, the woman once again entered my vision as she entered the cave from there.

“...Larissa?”

She did not reply. When I rushed towards her, she unexpectedly flew away as if gently pushed by the wind. Without even shifting her gaze, she went out to the cove, then she was blown up towards the sky again. When I waited for a while, she emerged from the sea again. She repeated this over and over.

“What is this? What are you doing? I asked, trying to catch her.

“Ceremony of rebirth…” a voice behind me said and I turned to come face to face with Pidge.

“Rebirth?”

“Probably. Passing through a dark hole symbolizes being born again. She wants to go through this cave, to reincarnate as something else…”

I looked at her and she smiled gently.

“This cave attracts spirits, who repeat this ceremony. I only know up to that point…”

“So that means I’m a spirit now?”

“Yeah, try not to get close to that!” she said and took off to the waves.

“Pidge, wait!” I rushed after her, but I felt myself consumed by darkness.

_Lance! Lance!_

Someone was calling my name.

Help!

~

I walked up with a shock.

“Lance!”

I looked up to see Keith, who was shaking me.

“Last night you fell asleep on the floor. It’s already morning, so you should wake up…”

“Thanks…”

“Did you find out anything…in your dreams?”

Huh?

“Yeah…I think I’ve seen the ceremony of rebirth. Larissa was there!”

“Tour of the womb, I’m assuming,” he remarked, and I looked at him confused. “There are similar places in shrines and temples. A large tunnel resembles a mother’s womb. If you go through the tunnel and come out, it signifies being born again.”

Oh, now I understand.

“By the way, where is everyone?”

“They are in the base, waiting for you.”

~

I only just returned to base when the fire alarm went off. Some wing in the main house was aflame and we rushed to stop the fire.

When we went out into the corridor, there was a faint smoke drifting from the direction of the main building. As we ran, smoke could be seen through the window rising from the back of the main building.

“...isn’t that the grandmother’s room!?”

“It looks like it.”

As we ran up, flames were rising from the back of the corridor that led to the tatami mat room where the grandmother was.

“Coran!” Aksel, who was putting out the fire with a blanket, raised his voice.

“Are you okay!? What about your grandmother!?”

“My father just went in from the window.”

“What about the little kids?”

“They were already taken outside.”

Mathea rushed over carrying a fire extinguisher. I took it.

“Are there more!?”

“Yes. We’re collecting them now.” She said, then ran away. Hunk held out his hands, so I passed him the fire extinguisher. I was about to follow Mathea when Shiro suddenly looked back behind him.

“...Pidge!” he said in a breath.

“Eh!?”

He pivoted and rushed off. “Please look after things here!” he screamed before exiting the corridor.

Look after… I reflexively started running, too.

“Lance!?”

“Allura, collect the fire extinguishers with Keith!” I shouted to her, who was dumbfounded, and ran after Shiro.

I just got a feeling I need to protect Pidge.

...everyone, I’m sorry!

Shiro rushed into the base and I bound into the room right after him.

“Ah...!?”

In the base was him and another person…Henri.

While peering in our direction, Henri tore up the sliding door that lead to the next room, where Pidge was still sleeping, with the kitchen knife he gripped. He raised one hand and shook the sliding door, however, it would not open. Growing irritated, he stabbed the paper with the point of the knife. The tightly closed door was in shreds because of that.

“Henri...”

This means that the one who was till possessed was Henri.

“Stop that. If you open that, you are going to die,” Shiro said calmly.

Not only him, but everyone too! If Pidge woke up with that spirit still trapped inside, we’ll be shattered to pieces.

Henri roared. He heavily drew back his kitchen knife and stabbed it. A deep gash was made on the sliding door.

“Lance, will you try attacking with the nine cuts?”

“What... !?”

I was told I shouldn’t use it on people!

“If I do it, he will be seriously injured,” he continued.

“But!”

“That barrier will not hold much longer. If Pidge is awoken, it will be the end.”

But... Suddenly, an image of the burns on the backs of Erik and Berith appeared in my mind. Hurting people is a dreadful thing.

Henri stabbed the knife again. A long hole opened in the sliding door. The white profile of Pidge, who was lying down, was visible through the tear. I raised my hand to ward off Henri, but my hand would not move. I was still hesitating…

Shiro whistled with his fingers. Henri again pierced the point of the blade into the hole in the sliding door. The hole expanded—

The thing I saw then made me stiffen. From out of the hole came— a red arm. It was an arm of about the length of a child’s and it seemed somewhat twisted. The skin looked like tanned leather, and yet, it was red as if wet with blood. The fingers were gnarled like knots, and the nails were as long as fingers...

Shiro’s shiki!

It moved with a speed that sliced the air, then disappeared into the hole. A moment later, blood went flying and splattered the surface of the sliding door. Henri dropped the kitchen knife. Four deep, narrow wounds were carved into his arm as if gouged out—

Despite me being stunned, Shiro moved without hesitation. Before I knew it, he had approached Henri, who was crouched and holding his arm, which was stained crimson with gushing blood. Again, blood flew. The spray-painted speckles over the sliding door. This time, it was Shiro who was bleeding.

He thrust his arm, which was deeply cut, toward the man. However, Kazuyasu quickly drew back. He sprang back like a cat. The movement didn’t seem human.

“Rin...”

I raised my hand.

“Pyō... Tō, Sha,”

This... terrible fight cannot be allowed!

“Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zai, Zen!”

The man howled. He flopped on top of the tatami mat, tumbling, then immediately got up and charged towards me. He hurled himself from right in front of me and I involuntarily screamed. He hit me and my back heavily collided with a post. For an instant, I stopped breathing, but I immediately shook my head with vigor.

...what happened to him!?

He wasn’t in the room. The figure of Shiro could be seen rushing out of the base. Though my feet got tangled, I chased after him. When I went out into the corridor, Henri had just broken through a window that was at the end of the corridor and flew outside.

“Lance, please call Coran! Send someone to the base!”

“Alright!”

Just as I ran toward the main building, I was immediately met by Coran and the others as they were returning.

“What’s wrong?”

“Henri... He attacked the base and fought with Shiro… he escaped to the garden. I was told to get you.”

“—Hunk, come on!”

“Alright!”

They ran off. Aksel followed them. I stopped Allura, who tried to follow thereafter.

“Go to the base so it’s not attacked again!”

“What about you, Lance?”

“I’m going after them!”

My feet already started running.

I rushed into the garden and looked around the surrounding area. Where did Shiro go!? The others, who were a little in front of me, were also looking around. Suddenly, I heard the sound of a whistle from the direction of the cape.

“Over there!”

We ran through the large garden, and when we went around the teahouse, Shiro’s figure became visible.

He cast a glance in this direction. He had a growing number of cuts. Henri could be seen hiding behind the shrubbery.

“Coran, watch yourself. He can use whirlwind sickles,” Shiro shouted.

“...damn.”

The man growled in the back of his throat like a cornered beast. We slowly closed in on him. Out of breath and dizzy, I placed my hand against the hedgerow. I felt nauseous with tension and fatigue—

“Lance, are you alr...”

I didn’t hear the end of Hunk’s words.

Suddenly, the scene lurched violently. It was distorted and twisted, and just as I clung to the hedgerow, I was pushed forcefully from behind.

—I’m falling!

My body became rigid. The scene was shaking and the surface of the water at the bottom of the cliff suddenly appeared in my field of view. The rocky stretch was washed by the waves and the waves bubbled pure white… I was going to crash. I could not live if I slammed into that.

Immediately, my field of view changed. The edge of the cliff was visible at my feet and then time stopped there. I was thrown into the air. The hedgerow was visible by the edge of the cliff, which I was slipping away from. Then, the figure of a person was there. As I grasped at edge of the hedgerow, the apathetic face that watched me fall away was…

“Lance!?”

Hunk called me and brought me back to myself.

I didn’t fall. My hand was grasping the hedgerow as it should be. My feet were properly situated.... my knees collapsed and I sat down on the spot.

Tears spilled in large drops.

“...Henri, you did it, didn’t you?”

He showed his face from among the shrubbery. He looked in my direction.

“You pushed Larissa from here.”

Images surfaced in my mind. In an evening room, a birdcage was there and Henri thrusted his hand inside the cage. There were cries like the high-pitched scream of birds…

“It was you who killed the birds and dogs, too.”

In the garden. He was coming out of the garage. Erik and Berith were watching him…

“You also tampered with the car... why are you doing all of this?”

My tears would not stop. Henri did those things, and yet he didn’t.

Coran quickly formed the sword seal.

“...who are you?”

Only a growl was heard from the shrubbery.

“What grudge do you bear to do something like this?”

A spray of blood went up like a burst of mist. A red wound appeared on Coran’s arm.

“Tell me who!”

A low laughter resounded from the shrubbery.

“Why do you want to wake Pidge up?”

There was no reply. Only a chuckle reverberated from the shrubbery.

“What’s your purpose?”

Finally, a low voice replied.

“Death. When she wakes up everyone will die a painful death and the master will be please…”

Suddenly, he sprung out from the shrubbery where he was hiding and ran low through the garden. He was much faster than my eyes could follow. When my eyes caught up with the direction Henri had run, his figure was nowhere.

When I pushed down the hedgerow, there was only an expanse of sky fully bathed in light.

By the time I reached the hedgerow on the cove side, there was a figure floating in the pure white foam that stretched over the surface of the cove water. Aksel stopped Coran who tried to rush off in order to bring him back to his senses.

“It’s already... too late.”

“But...”

After he said that, the monk exhaled and looked down.

The neck of that person, who floated face down in the foam, was bent at a very unusual angle. If anyone were to look, they would know that it was already too late.

People died even before this case. But it wasn’t in front of my eyes.

Tears rapidly flooded my eyes, and it was impossible to open them.

“What did we come here for!? We can’t do anything at all!!” I shouted.

Everything was going downhill First Pidge, now Larissa and Henri!

A painful sorrow filled my chest, and it was impossible to even breathe or swallow. With this bitter thing caught in my throat, I thought I would surely suffocate. Someone stroked my back. A warm arm went around my shoulders.

“...it was nobody’s fault.”

It was Aksel’s voice.

“It was nobody’s fault.”

I could not answer. I also couldn’t open my eyes. My head was down, and I rubbed my forehead against the top of Hunk’s shouldered.

“I know that you did everything you could.”

Still, it doesn’t make sense that people should have to die.

“I think I’m okay with this,” Aksel whispered.

...how...

When I raised my face, he was crying.

“Because at least my brother… lived without knowing what he had done.”

...what he had done. That he pushed his little sister and let her die…

I nodded. Even so, I couldn’t stop crying.


End file.
